The Uchiha Clan Survivors
by AnimeFreaks13
Summary: He didn’t hear the soft stealthy footsteps approach, or see the girl as she put her hair back up. ‘Don’t let him underestimate you.’ she said to herself. COMPLETE
1. Uchiha Satsuki

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Author's Notes: **Ok, this story is so gonna suck, so I am going to explain myself here and now. -clears throat-

1. I wrote this a long long long time ago...like...1 or 2 years...soon after I first discovered Naruto...yea.

2. I still have no idea how the Uchiha Massacre actually happened, so bear with me, this is MY way of how it happened! -maniacal laughter- -coughs- um...yea...

3. When I wrote this, I thought of Itachi as an evil bastard. I had no idea who the Akatsuki(sp?) were and I thought Itachi was the leader of an evil, infamous group of thugs, murderers, and otherwise bad people.

4. A lot of stuff in here might be wrong, like how Naruto acts. I would like to apologize in advanced for this, like I said, I was new to the series. I would go back and change it, but it fits in with the story, so I can't.

5. I was told that a serious back injury (you'll find out later) is fatal. Just think of the victim as being very _very_ lucky, alright? -smile-

6. The characters WILL be OOC!

7. I didn't know Sasuke's birthday until after this, so don't bug me about it if you have any problems. -whispers- Psst! It's July 23 if you wanna know, according to AbsoluteAnime.

8. If my chakra knowledge is wrong, oh well. I had only begun to read Naruto at the time and besides, it works in my story! -smirk-

9. If this seems like an incest story, I am so sorry. It wasn't meant that way, seriously. But if you think about it, the Uchiha's married each other a lot...I think -quiet voice-

10. Ah...do I have a ten? Hm...Oh, here's one! If you think their nicknames (at the entire end of this story) are corny, sorry again! I thought they were good, and the reasons behind them are sweet!

I'll post these at the beginning ofsome chapters, just so you remember incase one of these refers to that chapter.

**Disclaimer For All 18 Chapters :** I DO NOT OWN NARUTO! I own Satsuki, and that is IT! -seems high and mighty- I may_ wish_ I owned Sasuke-san, but I don't...-slouch, loses mighty air, sad-

**Chapter 1 - Uchiha Satsuki**

A girl walks along, age 10, through a forest. She just left town. Her mother and herself left their home town of Konohagakure village when she was 6. Just last year her mother passed away. It was said that she had an unknown sickness. She didn't care. She's been training her whole life to become a ninja, and passed the test at 6 just before they left.

I had wanted to be a ninja of the leaf village, not the sand, mist, water, or any other village. So I took the tests early, and passed. I may become a higher leveled ninja when I get back, but who knows?

Now, as she lay on her death bed, my mom told me I had relatives. She said that it might seem as though I was the only one of my clan left, but that it wasn't true. She called him my brother, but in truth, he was probably closer to being a distant cousin in my book. I'd never met him before in my life.

So now I'm walking. I've finally decided to return to my home village. As I traveled, I heard rumors. The Uchiha Clan had been wiped out, by an unknown assassin. Along with the darkness came a light. A young boy of my age was the only survivor. Like I said, I've never met him before. Or maybe I have.

At a clan party, or in the street. But not enough to remember what he was like. I've never met him, but he's my relative. My dad cheated on my mom, when she finally found out, she tried to cope with it. But she was unable to, so she took me and left. I've never met him, Uchiha Sasuke. But he's my half brother...

-

Sasuke sat on a tree branch, looking out over the forest. It was early, no one was awake yet. Except for Naruto. He was training. Come to think of it, he should be training too. So Sasuke got down and began his daily training, which would last all day.

At around eight, Naruto stopped and got breakfast, took an hours rest, then got lunch, waited 30 minutes for digestion, and continued. Sasuke trained non-stop. He had eaten what you could hardly call a breakfast early this morning, and had a sparse lunch. But mostly he trained.

"I've...got to...become...stronger" Sasuke said as he punched, kicked, and mainly destroyed his targets in practice. Sakura was training, her mind. She was supposedly already good enough for the time being, so she was taking the day off. Kakashi seemed to be lost again, because he didn't show up that day.

-

"He's not the only one..." said a males voice.

"What?" Kakashi asked.

"The Uchiha boy. He's not the only Uchiha left." the guy said again.

"But how is that possible?" Kakashi asked.

"His father had two wives." Kakashi's eyes widened. "He had three kids. Itachi, Sasuke, and Satsuki."

"But...Itachi destroyed the whole clan, except Sasuke. It wouldn't matter."

"Unless Itachi didn't know of them." Kakashi looked questioning. "When he was 10 and Sasuke was 6, Satsuki and her mother Nomi left the village because of her father's cheating ways."

"Cheating?"

"Yes, Sasuke and his Mother knew nothing of it, when Nomi found out, she took Satsuki and left. Itachi had never really met Satsuki or her mother, so he did not know that more had survived."

Kakashi's eyes were wide. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because. The Uchiha blood runs in her veins. Her mother died the same year the clan was destroyed. She's been traveling and training the whole time. And now she's coming home." he said in a mystic manor. Kakashi's eyes widened to their farthest extent.

"Sir!"

"It is inevitable that they should meet. She won't arrive for 1 week unless she slows or quickens her speed. Keep an eye out, I want confirmation the second she arrives."

"Yes sir." Kakashi bowed and left. Hokage looked pleased.

"This will be interesting." he smiled.

-**  
Three Days Later **

Satsuki has short black hair like Sasuke's and black eyes like his too, but 'deeper'. She wore dark clothing and anyone who met her would think she was a boy. She kept her headband hidden most times because opposing ninja would attack more likely if she did wear it. She decided to wear it when she got to the village.

In the forest, she heard someone training, so she snuck a peak. Using the stealth training she'd learned while in other villages, she spied on this ninja. He had hair and eyes like hers, but wore different clothes. Her head snapped up as another ninja ran out of the other side of the clearing where the boy trained.

He had blonde hair and wore orange. He was yelling and was soon followed by a large boar. The dark haired boy hit it on the neck and it fell unconscious. "Be careful next time, dobe." he said to the blonde, disappearing. Satsuki stood up and continued walking.

'_They wore Konohagakure headbands, I'm nearly home. I hope I find him here...' _she thought, looking up at the clouds, then putting a hand slightly down the back of her shirt, pulling out a headband. She flipped it around and laid it on her forehead like everyone else. "I'm ready...I hope." She said as she neared the edge of town.

**

* * *

Preview: Sasuke was about to fall asleep, or bust in to see if everyone was dead, when the door opened. He jumped up and looked around. Coming out of the door was...him? Wait, no. This person's clothing was different, and their eyes...He was snapped out of it when they looked in his direction. Sasuke hid quickly behind a tree and they kept walking.**

* * *

Jess : Hey there! As you can see, I have the next chapter ready. But still, I'm gonna ask...Should I continue this?

Ok, now that that's over with, if you wanna blame someone for missing words or misspellings, don't blame me! -smile- You can blame my sister, Reb! -points to girl at other computer wearing a headset and messing with scenes from Gundam-

Reb : Hmm...-click- -click- -pause- agh -click click- -click-

Jess : She's my beta for this story! You have no idea how long I've been fighting myself on whether or not to post this sorry excuse for a story or not. Oh, and...up there, where I said I had the next chapter ready. Slight lie. I have the entire _story_ completed. All I have to do is add my reviewer responses and have it beta'd for approvement. -slight smile- Anyways, I'm hungry, so...bye!


	2. Search for Truth and Companionship

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Kodoku -** Hello! I don't like most OC's either...they just kinda...screw things up, huh? -small smile- I'm glad you like my story though! Thanks for your review and I hope it stays good enough that you'll keep reading.

**Vans -** -ahem- Uh...Vans...dear...DUH! Of COURSE I know Itachi killed them! -calm- Hokage-sama tells Kakashi that Itachi didn't know them, so he didn't kill them. Also, I meant that I didn't know the whole story...like...Sasuke's role really, and _how_ Itachi killed them, or the real reason _why_...ya know? Anyway, I hope this chapter is good.

_Pink-Kitty -_ Thank You! I'm so glad you liked it! I know her age is one year less than Itachi when he passed, which will be noted later, but unfortunately...she hasn't been back to the village since then so _no_...she's not Jounin level...sadly still thought of as Genin...-sigh- um...also...Sharingan...I uh...when I wrote this story...I mentioned my lack of knowledge last chapter...thankfully I know now but...when I wrote this...-pause- Ididn'tknowaboutSharingansonoshewon'tbeusingitinmystory! -takes a deep breath- hope you don't mind...but I don't think I could go back and make the Uchiha's use it in this story...I'm not so talented...

P.S. To all people checking this thing looking for my excuses...THAT is the reason Of Blue and Silver Hair isn't up yet. -contemplating pose- Yes, my mother bought me the first 5 dvds of Gundam SEED but my first version was so screwed up...it'll take me awhile to fix it...and my laziness...

Ok, enough of this! I'll let you read now!

**Chapter 2 - Search for Truth and Companionship **

She walked along the edge of town, not yet entering it. She watched how fun and happy everyone looked, but none of them were of the Uchiha blood line. _'I can just tell...'_ she thought. The rumors must've been true, a young assassin had come and killed everyone off, when she was nine. Satsuki sighed, sitting behind a house on the edge of town.

A little ways away she could hear the kids laughing and playing ninja. The Uchiha's never_ played_ ninja, they _were_ ninja. _'I've looked this whole town over, I still haven't seen him. Is it possible that he left before I got here? Did I arrive to late?' _She looked up, the sky was darkening, and usually she didn't sleep till midnight or later, but she decided to get up early and ask the Hokage. So she went to sleep.

-

"Hello?" Satsuki called into the darkness that now surrounded her. Something about this place was making her tense up, but it felt familiar too. Laughter filled her ears, her head, her heart. It was cruel and unforgiving.

"Die!" Said an evil voice, then came the screams of many people. Women, children, men, screams filled her head. Satsuki covered her ears and closed her eyes. She wish it to stop, and suddenly, everything became eerily quiet.

"Foolish little brother. If you want to kill me, then hate, spite, and survive pathetically." He said. She heard the whimpers on a small boy, then they stopped and he yelled. It was full of anger, sadness, loneliness...

As she opened her eyes she now saw the floor covered in blood, corpses laid everywhere, and a boy was crouched near a female._'His mother...' _Satsuki thought. "I've never met him." Her words echoed around her, though she hadn't spoken.

Everything went black, everything was gone. Except the silent tears of a boy she never knew. It seemed she was standing in the middle of a lake on the surface of the water, the lake made of tears and cries of sadness from people who suffered echoed softly around the water, making ripples.

The cries slowed and dimmed, until they were no more. But the ripples continues, as if invisible feet were walking on the water towards her. A voice resounded as they came closer. "I've never met him." her words echoed again. Then her voice, but more evil, sounded and Satsuki's gaze fell upon the rippling water.

"You've never met him." the invisible female said. Semi-transparent feet appeared, followed by the body. She wore a long black dress that looked as if a 5 year old had snipped the bottom and had no real sleeves. Her hair hung to her shoulders and her black pool eyes showed hate beyond all else.

"If you've never met him, or seen him, how do you expect to find him?" she said, her mouth not moving.

Satsuki tried speaking, but no words came out. "You are so slow." said the voice, the girl's mouth still did not move, but she made movements as if she were talking. "Your voice is not present here, only your thoughts. Speak with them, instead of with your mouth or fists." Satsuki glared.

"Who are you?" she thought, her voice now echoing in the dark.

"Me? I'm you. Or, somewhat." she started walking, making the same ripples as before. Satsuki noted that if she let her hair down from it's boyish look, that her hair would indeed be that long. And if she wore that dress and shown that hate, then they would be twins.

"How?" Was all she asked.

"You. Your stupidity. You fell asleep, thinking you would find your half brother, our half brother. Yet you have no clue where to start." Shadow Satsuki said. She raised her hands and the voices of villagers filled the area.

"Did you hear? The Uchiha clan was killed!" "No, I heard there was one survivor." "Yea, a 9 year old kid." "I kinda feel sorry for him." "I hear some assassin killed them off, 13 years old!" "I guess they weren't that strong" "Are you nuts? They were a great family, known for a great distance." "Yea, this kid's gotta be a super mutant ninja or something." "You idiot, he was trained well." "Well, I hear he was a Uchiha himself." "No way!" "Yea, killed everyone but that little kid. I suppose he wanted someone around to feel the pain." "Poor boy. Orphan now I suppose?" "Yep."

"The rumors." Satsuki whisper thought.

"Yes, they traveled almost as fast as you. Strangely, I think your dying mother was trying to outrun them. So were you." Shadow Satsuki taunted.

"Shut up. I was not running away. I'm a strong ninja. I've trained in almost every place I've been, never really becoming a ninja. I could beat anyone." Satsuki said, trying to stay calm.

"Anyone? How about me?" Shadow Satsuki challenged, Satsuki accepted. They fought for what seemed like forever. "You can't beat me Satsuki! I'm you! I know every one of your moves!" S. S. (Shadow Satsuki) yelled, her voice echoing loudly.

"You may know my moves..." Satsuki hit S.S. in the gut, making her pause, then hit her in the back of the neck. S. S. was now sprawled on the surface of the water, only giving off small ripples. "But you're not me. I told you, I'm going to find Sasuke, and I meant it. No one, not even me, is going to stop me."

Shadow Satsuki looked up at Satsuki before her head fell and she sunk beneath the water. Satsuki fell down into a sitting position and closed her eyes. She then heard birds chirping and some whispered boys' voices.

-

"You think he's dead?" a boy with short black hair asked.

"Who knows." said one of his friends, a female.

"Hey looks like 'the man,' doesn't he?" Konohamaru said, examining Satsuki. She moaned as she began waking up.

"Ah!" the smaller boy with the stick jumped back in surprise. Satsuki opened her eyes. "Hey! It's a...girl!" he cried.

She glared. "Who are you?" she asked. Konohamaru, though scared out of his wits, stepped up to answer.

"I am Konohamaru! These are my friends! We follow 'the man!'" he declared. She stood up, Konohamaru shrank. She seemed so much taller than him now.

"Who's the man?" she asked.

"That's none...none of your business lady." Konohamaru said before ordering a retreat and running. His friends stared for a second and then ran after Konohamaru, screaming. Satsuki covered her ears.

"Man, their loud..." she muttered before walking towards the Hokage's place. She noticed that her headband had fallen down and wasn't visual anymore. Which was probably why they were afraid of her. She pulled it around the front but didn't put it on.

-

Sasuke had this weird feeling since yesterday night. Like someone or something from his dreams, or nightmares, had come out. He was standing in his room, back to the window, he got that feeling again as a girl passed by and so he turned around.

But, like the last time he did this, no one was there. The girl had passed out of view before he could turn around. He walked to the window and looked out, he saw the center of town a little ways away, and a figure dressed in dark colors walking towards the Hokage's office. His worst fears seemingly realized, Sasuke grabbed his coat (for today was unusually cold), some shoes, and headed out.

-

Satsuki had not turned around when she felt something. But she thought for a moment that a Uchiha blood relative had been nearby. She wasn't sure, so she kept on her path. Soon she reached the building and knocked on the door, she was greeted well and when she asked to see Lord Hokage the secretary Lady had her take a seat.

Sasuke stood outside near a tree, if this was Itachi, why wasn't he killing everyone and getting it over with. He hadn't seen the front side of his "prey" but he was almost positive that their name was Uchiha. (not exactly wrong is he?)

Satsuki sat in the room for what seemed like hours, but the clock said that it had only been thirty minutes, when a man with black hair that looked like he was boasting about being the emperors right hand man walked in.

"Are you the one who wished to see the Lord Hokage?" he asked.

"Yes." she nodded. She had taken her hair down after sitting there for ten minutes so it now hung to her shoulders, how she kept it up without the appearance of a hair tie is beyond anyone's knowledge.

"Name?" he asked.

"Satsuki."

"Last Name." he corrected.

"Oh. Uchiha."

"Uchiha? Don't joke around girl. I don't have time for these pranks. Get out of here!"

"But..."

"I'm serious. Don't make me call in Lord Hokage."

"I understand. Good day." and she walked out of the door. Wait, wasn't her intention to see the Lord Hokage? Oh well, she walked past the secretary, giving her a smile, before somehow putting her hair back up like before and opening the door.

Sasuke was about to fall asleep, or bust in to see if everyone was dead, when the door opened. He jumped up and looked around. Coming out of the door was...him? Wait, no. This person's clothing was different, and their eyes...He was snapped out of it when they looked in his direction. Sasuke hid quickly behind a tree and they kept walking.

As they left Sasuke's breathing became ragged. Someone was here that looked like him. Was it a new plan to ruin his life even more? (maybe. heh heh) He jumped from behind the tree and into town.

-

Satsuki remembered how she felt someone's chakra. She had turned her head and looked, and they had hidden. They were worried, scared almost. Could it have been her half brother? Was he surprised to see another Uchiha? This thinking made her hungry. Satsuki walked into the ramen shop and took down her hair.

"Hungry? What'll you have?" The owner asked.

"Just some ramen." she said softly. He got her a bowl and she began eating it.

"I haven't seen you around here before. You a visitor?" He asked.

"Yea..." she said softly.

"Something seems to be bothering you. What's wrong kid?" he asked.

She sighed. "I came here looking for someone. But I can't find them. I've tried asking the Lord Hokage, but his pompous assistant stopped me." The owner shook his head.

"Don't mind him, he thinks he rules the world. If Hokage the Third had been there, he would've gladly spoken with you."

"So, he wasn't there?"

"I'd guess not. Who are you looking for anyway?" He asked, giving her a cup of soda and taking up her bowl.

"Uchiha, Uchiha Sasuke." She said, drinking her soda.

He wasn't phased. "Oh, well. His house is at the edge of town, but he doesn't like to be bothered. You'd probably have a better chance if you tried-"

But the soda then fell to the counter. "He actually lives here? He didn't leave?"

"Uh...no...he didn't move." He said. She seemed really happy.

"For a moment I thought he'd moved away before we got a chance to talk."

"Ok, try the forest. He's usually training east of town." He said. Just as the words left his mouth she was gone.

-

Sasuke was in the forest, he had long since given up trying to train. The fact that there was someone who looked just like him kept popping into his head and he couldn't concentrate._'If they're an assassin, they're taking their sweet time killing me...' _he thought.

Sasuke found himself staring at the sky, watching clouds go by. He didn't hear the soft stealthy footsteps approach, or see the girl as she put her hair back up._'Don't let him underestimate you.' _she said to herself.

"I was told I'd find you here training." she said. Sasuke's head snapped down and stared at the person that looked like him. Her head was a little down, so the eyes weren't visible. "Not lounging around."

Sasuke jumped down from his low tree branch seat and got a defensive pose. "You are Uchiha Sasuke, right?" she seemed to be having trouble talking.

"Yes, why?" He answered. She lifted her head, eyes brimming with tears. He was surprised, dropping his guard. She ran up to him, hair falling down and tears falling from her eyes, hugging him, which nearly knocked him over.

Sasuke was now surprised well beyond his normal, preset limits and his head hurt. "Who?" he managed to get out. Satsuki raised her head and looked up at him.

"I'm Satsuki. And as far as all information goes, you're my brother." she said, standing up.

"What?" Sasuke's head still hurt.

"Well, half brother anyway. I've been looking for you for awhile." she seemed pretty happy. "Come on, let's go into town." she grabbed his arm and made him walk. Sasuke began walking on his own.

-

Sasuke was walking through town with Satsuki. He was trying to keep a low profile like usual but it seemed every girl in town that had a crush on him (that means every girl!) was glaring in his direction. Why? Because Satsuki was clinging to his arm and he didn't seem to mind.

Sakura walked out of a store, a bag in her hand. "I'm sure Sasuke will like...this?" she saw Satsuki clinging to Sasuke, Sasuke just walking and blushing, and dropped the bag. She fell to her knees and looked about to cry. Inner Sakura, _"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT? Lemme at 'er lemme at 'er!" _

They walked quickly past everyone and when they walked past the ramen shop the guy stuck his head out. "Found him I see."

"Yep! Thanks a lot!" and they kept walking. They soon got to Sasuke's house where Sasuke then pried Satsuki off his arm.

"Stop clinging to me." he said shortly.

"What's wrong?" she asked, not clinging anymore.

"Wrong? I still don't believe we're related, that's what's wrong. My entire family was killed when I was nine. And now you appear claiming to be my half sister." he refrained from yelling.

"I am. I am of the Uchiha bloodline!" she yelled. Sasuke didn't look as if he believed her and went inside. She followed him.

"Go home." he said shortly.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't have a home." she said slowly.

"What?" Sasuke turned around to look at her. She did look like him...No! Stop thinking like that! "What do you mean? Why don't you have a home?"

"Konohagakure is the closest thing I've ever had to a home. My mother...and your mother too, they were cheated by our father. When my mom found out, she packed our things and we left the village. When she died three years ago, she told me I had family elsewhere. I couldn't really remember more than brief glimpses of the elders and other kids. She said I'd feel like I was the only one, but that I had a brother, two half brothers actually." Sasuke grimaced. "So, I traveled and trained. When I heard rumors that the Uchiha clan had been murdered and that you were the only survivor..."

"You came looking." Sasuke finished. "Well, that would explain why you're alive. But my entire family was made of Konohagakure ninja. If you left, then you're not a ninja, or at least not one from Konohagakure village. You'll have to pass the test before I'll acknowledge you." he said, looking for something to eat. Satsuki smiled.

"Great"

"What?" Sasuke was confused. He brought out some leftover chicken.

"You see, I wanted to be a ninja that represented my hometown, so when mom said we were leaving soon...I practiced till I nearly killed myself. Mom saw how important it was to me, so she waited before leaving. I took the test..." Satsuki reached in her shirt and took out her headband. She smiled. Sasuke nearly dropped the chicken. He sighed and cooked it.

"Fine, you're my sister." When it was done heating up he took it out. He paused just as he took it out and, glancing over to Satsuki, asked "Dinner?" She nodded and they ate.

"So..." Satsuki said during dinner.

"What?" Sasuke asked, not looking up.

"Well, you see...I don't...have a place to stay..." Sasuke stopped eating and looked up slightly to look at her. "I was wondering if I could stay here?" she asked. Sasuke finished eating, cleaned up his plate, and headed for his room. Satsuki looked sadly after him.

"I don't care..." was barely audible as he closed the door behind him. She smiled and cleaned up her plate. Satsuki got out some extra covers, which she was amazed he had, and laid down on the couch.

_'Now I've met him.'_

-

**Preview:** No Preview! Next chapter is too short for a preview! -sweatdrop- And I didn't notice until after I wrote a ton...But I think the next chapter is sweet...if it's any consolation...


	3. Is It All A Dream?

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

Reb: yo. Jess is busy right now so I'll be doing reviews. Jess is getting her hair straightened.. Anyway, Reviews!

**Kodoku -** Always nice to have an old fan of our stories liking our new ones. Welcome Back and I hope you like this chapter too.

**Vans -** I found your review quite amusing. Trust me, Jess wasn't mad at all. She just wanted to make it clear that she already knew about that whole thing before writing this. I should know, she never shuts up about this show. Anyway, Jess hopes you like the chapter. Later.

Reb: woa.. this chapter is short..

**Chapter 3 - Is it all a dream? **

Sasuke had fallen asleep with the thought of how great it would be, not to be alone. His dreams were filled with pictures of his 'childhood' which he gave up at age 9. Him playing with his mom and brother. His dad. He faintly and subconsciously remembered hearing that a family was leaving.

- - - — — —

I was running through town, the thought of being alone was far from my mind. I was only 6 years old. Fun and games, along with training, were some of the only things that mattered. But I didn't take my training seriously enough.

I saw her. She had long hair that went to the center of her back almost. Damn me for being stupid. She wore a Konohagakure village headband around her neck, and her hand was in her mother's. They were heading for the edge of town. Her mom held a small bag and a slightly larger bag.

I was interested, so I followed them. She was my age, was the headband her mother's? No she had one of her own. That little girl was a ninja at her age? Just like my brother. They were headed for the forest. Mom never mentioned them, dad hardly spoke, how was I supposed to know who they were?

As they reached the forest edge, the girl turned her head to look back. Her eyes...so full of sadness. They caught me by surprise, and for what seemed like forever, our eyes locked. I had to know who she was. She was a Uchiha. That much I knew just from looking at her. But why was she leaving?

Our gaze broke as her mom pulled her further and further from my spot near a store wall. For a moment I couldn't move. Then I jumped up and ran after her, staring through the trees, but she was gone. Who had that girl been? Would I see her again? I felt connected, by Uchiha blood alone was uncertain, and I didn't care. I really hoped I'd meet her again.

For days I was obsessed with who she was and where she was. I searched the house windows and the stores. I asked my mom if she knew, she didn't. She knew that there were many people in the town and many Uchiha's, it was hard to tell whom I meant. I felt discouraged, and then I asked the guy at the restaurant one day when my dad took me.

I asked him the question that had been bugging me. Did he know a girl who was a new ninja, my age, with long black hair. He told me of a girl like that and where she lived. I thanked him and next chance I got, I went to the address.

All I found was a building with the door unlocked. I opened the door and felt my heart drop to my knees. It was empty. She wasn't here. I had searched all this time for a shadow? As I looked around the deserted house I asked myself, was she just a dream? Maybe she had been a ghost...but it wasn't logical at all.

Soon, I left the house, glancing back at it over my shoulder as I walked. Her eyes...they had been so full of sadness...

Soon she passed out of my thought, my memory, and only in the back of my mind did I remember the girl with long black hair and distant eyes, who bore the headband of Konohagakure Village, hidden in the leaves.

My life continued, and training, fun, and games were back on my top priority list. Then, at age 9, Itachi betrayed us all. He murdered everyone except me, telling me to live my pathetic life hating him. I did, I hated him. I trained, but I was never strong enough...I'm still not strong enough.

Distant eyes...they invaded my dreams, my subconscious, but I never could remember my dreams, and besides the thought of Itachi, my subconscious wasn't really what I listened to. Sadness...distance...those eyes...the Konohagakure ninja from my past. The Uchiha girl with long black hair, distant eyes, and the headband of the Hidden in the Leaves village...

Was she just a dream?

_The darkness envelopes me... _

Was it all just a dream?

_The cause consumes me... _

Is life just a dream?

_I become an empty shell... _

Is it all just a dream?

_I swore to the kill... _

Was she...

_I swore to kill Itachi... _

Was she just...

_The darkness envelopes me... _

Was she just a dream?

- - - — — —

Preview : _'Sasuke is popular among the ladies...he must've thought me to be just another boy crazy fan...maybe he still thinks of me that way...' _she shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts. Then she heard a yell.


	4. Sakura Encounter

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Kodoku - **Heh heh, so much for fast updating. In full truth, I forgot to update this story. -sweatdrop- I hope you like this chapter.

**Magick Kiss - **I know...And it will definitely seem as such at points in the story...

**Vans - **Sorry for not updating. I'm glad we cleared that up. I hope you like this chapter to. But it's not as...'dramaful' as the last one I don't think.

**Chapter 4 - Sakura Encounter **

Sasuke woke up and it took a moment to remember. But in truth_, had _it all been a dream? That he had a sister? He stood up, got dressed, and opened his bedroom door slowly. He looked around, not expecting to see anything. He couldn't see anyone...the hope he had when he slept dispersed.

His gaze fell slowly on the edge of a quilt, laying off the couch. He slowly walked over to it, his heart rising in his chest. His eyes saw the peaceful face of a girl. She wore the clothes from yesterday, but she now wore a smaller black shirt.

Sasuke put his hand out as if to touch her face. But it moved instead to her hair. He ran his fingers through her black waves, enjoying the moment. He really had a sister. This fact lightened his heart and the world seemed better in the smallest way.

He was surprised when Satsuki lightly grabbed his wrist and hugged it to her in her sleep. He had to sit down so not to either break his wrist or violently wake her up. He was about to pull his hand away when he realized that he could feel her heart beat from where his hand was near her Pulse Point. It was steady and was like a slow dance that he would be avoiding. After a few minutes he slowly removed his hand from her grip. Her hand held his as he pulled away and only when her fingers no longer touched his hand did she pull her hand back in.

Sasuke sighed. This was very unlike him. Usually he would have probably shook her up and kicked her out. He stared out the far window at the slowly rising sun and smirked. He then turned, with his hands in his pockets, and headed to make some breakfast...for two. He shook his head, made it sound like he was married or something. But...it was nice to know he wasn't alone...

Satsuki woke to the smell of bacon, eggs, and leftover chicken from dinner. She yawned silently and opened her eyes as she stretched. She turned her head and saw that Sasuke was making breakfast. She was so happy. Satsuki was no longer alone. She no longer needed to walk around endlessly without a destination. She had a brother, a home. Or, she hoped it would be a home.

She sat up and moved the covers. She silently folded them and laid them at the end of the couch. Afterwards, Satsuki pulled her day shirt overtop of her night shirt and stood up. She headed for the bathroom. After using the bathroom, washing up, and swishing her mouth out as best as possible until she could go buy a toothbrush, hers was old and needed replacing, she headed out to the kitchen just as Sasuke took the bacon and others off the stove.

"Oh! You're...awake." he said, startled. She smiled, he wasn't used to there being another person in his house.

"Good morning Sasuke-san." She said brightly, not in the least bit tired. "I overslept." After a strange look from Sasuke she explained. "Usually I am up before the sun. Watching the sun rise is a wonderful thing." As she took a bite of her breakfast Satsuki looked to the window where the sun had already crept above the horizon line enough to light the area.

Although a bit surprised by her politeness in addressing him, Sasuke continued as if he hadn't heard it. "So. Do you plan on staying here the whole time, or are you going to go get a room at the inn?" he asked. Part of him wondered why he had asked, it wasn't like he cared. But the other part of him was hoping she would stay.

"Well..." she held her fork in a downwards position as she curved her hand and put her chin on the back of her hand. "I thought about it. And I was hoping I could stay here." When Sasuke stopped eating, like last night, she added, "Oh, but if you don't want me to, I can always go to the Inn..." she began eating faster than usual.

"No..." Sasuke mumbled, running a hand through his hair. He wasn't used to this. "I didn't mean anything by that..." he sighed and made a noise that said he was becoming frustrated. "It's just...I've never even cared if anyone was living here or not. If you want you can stay here, just do what you want. Besides..." he ate a little before continuing. "You don't exactly look like you have money enough to live at the Inn for more than an hour." he pointed an accusing fork at her.

"Well, I guess...I did spend my money before I got here...I'll have to find some way to earn money..." she finished eating and cleaned up her plate as Sasuke finished. "I'm going out. I'll be back later, I think I'll go meet Lord Hokage...I had been meaning to talk to him yesterday." He watched as she put her hair up in the fashion that made her look like him and then walked outside. Sasuke sighed and cleaned up his plate.

'I'll have to ask her why she puts her hair up like that some day...' he thought as he left to the forest to train.  
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The day before yesterday - 7:46 p.m.

"Lord Hokage!" Kakashi said, entering the Hokage's office.

"So. She has arrived." he said, lighting his pipe.

"Yes sir. What do we do now?" he asked. Hokage shrugged as if he knew but didn't care.

"Let her be I guess...No use putting it off." he said in a slightly mystic voice.

"Lord Hokage? You seem...to know more than you're telling." Kakashi inferred. Again, Hokage shrugged.

"I always seem that way to people." Now his voice sounded slightly strained as he leaned back a bit in his chair. "But we do not have right to place ourselves in between in a matter of heart." he smirked at Kakashi.

"I understand, and I agree. So, I shall let her find him?" Kakashi asked.

"If she can find him, then let her find him. This is her journey. She chose to walk this path, and now she will follow it until it ends, or turns down another." he said, staring solemnly at the ceiling. Kakashi bowed and disappeared.- - - — — —  
Today

Satsuki walked down the street. She had pulled at the back of her shirt/jacket and unfurled a hood. She then had placed it on her head, and entered town. No one seemed happy about her being here yesterday, and all the girls were angry.

'_Sasuke is popular among the ladies...he must've thought me to be just another boy crazy fan...maybe he still thinks of me that way...' _she shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts. Then she heard a yell.

"Stop right there!" Satsuki turned around to see a pink haired girl with a slightly large forehead pointing to her. She walked closer to Satsuki, and was shaking with anger. "You..." she said through gritted teeth when she reached arms length of Satsuki.

"Me." she said, letting her hood drop. None of the girls were in sight except Sakura, so she figured it was safe. When she dropped her hood, Sakura stopped and stared.

"You...you...it's not you..." she said, then shook her head. "Yes it is! You're the girl from yesterday that was holding tight to my Sasuke-kun!" she yelled, pointing again.

"I'm not denying that I was holding Sasuke's arm yesterday. I do not doubt that you, as well as all other girls in the village, have a crush on Sasuke. But I do not remember Sasuke-san saying anything about having a girlfriend." Satsuki said, her expression betraying no emotion.

Sakura had heard nothing past 'Sasuke-san' and burst. "Why are you so friendly with him? Why do you call him -san? Who do you think you are huh? Argh! If I stay here any longer I'll kill someone!" she yelled, turning and walking off. She then turned around and punched at Satsuki, who caught her fist. "Huh?" she asked, surprised.

Satsuki's face showed a bit of annoyance. "If you want to fight, I advise you to get a little stronger first. This punch has nothing behind it. No chakra, or fighting will. All you have now is anger, and while that is a powerful tool, you need more than that to win a battle. Control your emotions towards Sasuke-san, and then come back to face me." she threw Sakura's fist to the side, turned, and continued walking towards Hokage's.

Sakura was now sitting on the ground, Satsuki had thrown her fist away, and it had unbalanced her, knocking her to the ground. Now she sat, staring after the ygirl as she put her hood back up. "Who...who is she?" she asked herself. 'Wasn't she my age? She's so powerful...'

Inner Sakura - Curled into a ball, rocking back and forth, _"Am I really so weak? Sasuke-kun would like her better I suppose..." _shakes self,_"No way! Sasuke-kun could never like someone stronger than he was!" _

Regular Sakura. "Maybe that's why...when we were climbing trees...he wasn't impressed..." she stood up, brushed herself off, and hoped no one had seen that.

Kakashi looked on from the bushes. "Hokage was right, this will be interesting. My students may have their work cut out for them..."

- - - — — —

**Preview **: She nodded, "Hokage-sama, who murdered my family?"

"Ah. You believe it was done by another clan! No, it was done by a Uchiha." He looked like he would laugh.

"What? That would mean Sasuke...no, he's the only survivor. But that would be a reason why...Hokage-sama! Please explain!" she stood up.


	5. Vow of Commitment

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Kodoku **- Yes, Sakura is just...yea...And yes, I've seen worse too. -muttermutter- But, I was at my friends house for the weekend, otherwise I'd've updated this sooner. -smile-

**Vans** - Moving the story forward. I don't know why, but...Your reviews scare me for some reason...I don't know why either...Maybe because you're a reviewer and I'm an authoress and we had a misunderstanding? -shrugs- Oh well. I think it mostly has to do with the fact that I'm not to confident about the majority of this fic...Ah, well, I think parts of it are more dramaful than others...depends on your idea of dramaful. I don't like this chapter much...

**DarkAnimeFan -** I'm glad you like my story -smile- I think this chapter is really wierd, but you might like it.

**HakuTenshi -** Thanks for the review and I like your penname. Hope you like this chapter.

**

* * *

Chapter 5 - Vow of Commitment**

Satsuki once again entered into the Hokage's place. The secretary told her to sit in the waiting room again, and she sat quietly. The pompous guy from before opened the door at the other end of the room again. He saw her and began glaring.

"I told you that I don't have time for your games. Today is no different from yesterday. Now get-" he started.

"Be quiet for once." Hokage said, walking out of the same door. "She is my guest, no matter what you believe."

"B-But sir! Do you know what she claims?" he asked in earnest.

"Yes, indeed I do. I will deal with it. You only need worry about your work. And next time that someone comes to see me, do not send them away as if they were common dust particles." He gave him a look that would seem to be kind at first glance, but looker closer and it showed a threat.

"Y-Yes sir!" and he left.

"Now then, come in my office Satsuki." he opened the door for her.

"How did you?" She asked.

"Do not worry so much young lady, I knew you were coming." he smiled. Satsuki followed him in his office.

"So..." Satsuki said, sitting down.

"Your first intention when coming to see me was to ask where Sasuke was. Now you wish to know what happened, right?" He guessed.

She nodded, "Hokage-sama, who murdered my family?"

"Ah. You believe it was done by another clan! No, it was done by a Uchiha." He looked like he would laugh.

"What? That would mean Sasuke...no, he's the only survivor. But that would be a reason why...Hokage-sama! Please explain!" she stood up.

He raised a hand to calm her. "It was not Sasuke. It was another Uchiha."

"But...they're all dead..."

"No. What do you know of your family besides that they were murdered?"

"Well, not much." she dropped her anger guard. "Just that my mom was cheated on by my dad. And that I had two half-brothers...You mean, Itachi, my other brother, is behind this? He's dead though."

"Ah. Don't believe rumors so much Satsuki. The rumors said one survivor, yet here you are. Isn't it possible that they missed another? Itachi..." he stood up and began to walk around the room. " He was a prodigy. At age 7 he was a ninja, Kakashi was a ninja at age 5, you are right in the middle. Better than Itachi was when he was 6, yet weaker than Kakashi when he was 6. Heh, seems you are the second best of the village, if you don't count me. Though, I _am_ old, I believe that Itachi could easily kill me, or you could. Satsuki, Itachi is insane, he gave up his sanity a long time ago." Hokage stopped in front of a window.

"Hokage...I...If Sasuke hadn't survived, I would have gone to Itachi and become an evil shinobi. I...owe him so much. If your trying to get me to leave, to find and fight Itachi, then it's a useless cause. I couldn't possibly leave him right now. He's all alone, and besides...He wants to kill Itachi." Satsuki looked about to cry. "And...even though I don't...want him to become a killer...I'll let him do as he wishes...he'll fulfill his vow..." Hokage smiled.

"And that's...what I wanted to hear." he turned to face her, pipe in his right hand. She looked up at him. "That is your vow of commitment to Sasuke. You'd do anything you could to protect him, you'd die to save those you are loyal to. Sasuke is the only one in that category, because he is the only family you have left. I accept that, and he does too."

"Vow of Commitment?" It sounded like she just married the guy or something.

"Yes. It doesn't need to be written down on paper, or signed with a meaningless signature. It is both said and written in your heart, and signed with love and devotion and loyalty. Satsuki, you are now bound by that vow. Even if you were to leave, or become evil, you have made your vow of commitment." He said, opening the door and motioning for her to leave. She left, still thinking it sounded like marriage...

-

Satsuki exited the Hokage's office and walked around the forest. _'Vow of Commitment...' _she thought.

"_Hokage...I...If Sasuke hadn't survived, I would have gone to Itachi and become an evil shinobi. I...owe him so much. If your trying to get me to leave, to find and fight Itachi, then it's a useless cause. I couldn't possibly leave him right now. He's all alone, and besides...He wants to kill Itachi. And...even though I don't...want him to become a killer...I'll let him do as he wishes...he'll fulfill his vow..." _

'He will fulfill his vow...'

"_And that's...what I wanted to hear. That is your vow of commitment to Sasuke. You'd do anything you could to protect him, you'd die to save those you are loyal to. Sasuke is the only one in that category, because he is the only family you have left. I accept that, and he does too." _

'My vow...'

"_It doesn't need to be written down on paper, or signed with a meaningless signature. It is both said and written in your heart, and signed with love and devotion and loyalty. Satsuki, you are now bound by that vow. Even if you were to leave, or become evil, you have made your vow of commitment." _

'Sasuke will fulfill his vow...and now I have my own vow...to help Sasuke, to protect him, to stay with him until he no longer needs me, until he dies, until Itachi is gone, and all Sasuke's hatred along with it.' She looked at the sky. 'My vow...of commitment...' A bird twittered nearby.

"It's afternoon already..." she said to herself, looking down at the grass. "This morning I felt great...Now my life seems meaningless..." she looked around to see that her feet had carried her away to a distant part of the forest. She began to train. "If I'm worthless, then my vow means nothing. So I will not agree to that, to the fact that I am worthless. I will become strong, to protect and support my brother, half or not. Sasuke-san!"

-

Sasuke was taking a 5 minute break from training. Naruto had stopped for breakfast, then snack, then digestion, then lunch, and was now somewhere in the city doing who knows what.

"I will become stronger." Sasuke said in a declaratory sort of way. His mind was filled with Itachi, and with Satsuki. The three of them. They were the Uchiha Clan survivors.

* * *

**Preview :** Satsuki stood up, grabbed Sasuke's hand, and led him off. She smiled softly and led him back to his house. "Take a break. Tomorrow, we train together."

"You just want to see how bad I can beat you." He mumbled in a amused sort of way. She just smiled.

**Preview #2 (feel proud) :** "I hear of many strange things while in town yesterday." he said. The smaller man was nearly laying on the ground.

"Hmm? What kind of...strange things? I believe you were in Konohagakure village, yes?" he asked, leaning forward slightly, but still in shadows.

"Yes master. I in Kono...haga-kure village." he stuttered. "many strange things going and coming there." he looked shiftily around the room.


	6. A Secret Kept, Now Leaks Out

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Kodoku - **Sorry about that. I hope this one is better than the last. Sorry for the late update, BLAME MY COMPUTER! It hates me...I just got online again today...

**Vans - **heh heh. Well, I can't say much to that. I hope you like this chapter.

Now that I look at it, a bit of this chapter is so cheezy...but at the time, I guess I thought it was great. Heh. Hope it doesn't suck too bad. Also, I hope Naruto doesn't act too stupid for your liking, at the time...I actually saw him as acting like this constantly...-sweatdrop-

**

* * *

Chapter 6 - A Secret Kept, Now Leaks Out**

Satsuki was walking through town again. It was around noon, so she decided to go to the Ramen shop. She sat down, a man in a cloak sat at the opposite end. He was eating a bowl of plain ramen and what looked like a salad without anything on it. Satsuki stared at the counter until the owner came up and asked for her order.

She sighed. "I don't know...Chicken Ramen I guess..." her gaze didn't move much from the counter top.

"What's the matter? You found Sasuke didn't you?" He asked, making her ramen as he spoke. The cloaked man stopped eating, then continued slowly.

"No...I found him...you saw that." she was still looking at the counter, but she had noticed the man's pause. "It's just...I don't know. I was so happy, but for some reason, I feel so weak and ...unhappy now." she closed her eyes half-way, her right arm was on the table.

"Ah. Maybe you're tired. You did say you were from out of town. Were you traveling a lot?" he set down the ramen, she began to eat.

"Yes...I've been traveling a very...very long time. Since I was 6." the owner was surprised. "No...not really. I lived with my mom until I was 9, but we had left the village and traveled a far distance away to another town." She ate slowly. Her strange sadness started to ebb away, and she ate a bit faster.

He whistled. "Wow. I've lived here my whole life. Most people have. The Uchihas have...or, did. They were all-"

"Killed." Satsuki interrupted. "No, murdered. My mother died when I was 9 of a mysterious illness. After that, I came back here...or, I traveled and trained first, but I still came back."

"I don't mean to interfere...but how does the death of your mom mix into the conversation about the murder of the Uchiha clan?" the owner asked, sitting on his chair across from her as she finished. She looked up at him.

"It's a secret, so you can't tell." she smiled.

"Ok. I won't tell a soul." he got closer to her so she could whisper it to him.

"I'm a Uchiha too." she whispered in his ear.

"What?" he gasped. The man in the cloak got silently off the chair and ran off. Satsuki noticed this and glared in that direction for a moment. Then she decided that he had heard her, but wasn't going to tell anyone in town.(smart one) She would have gone after him but the owner caught her in conversation again.

"Wow. I thought Sasuke was the only one left. Are you sure?" he smirked.

"Yep. That's what my mom said to me before she died. I mean, I knew I was a Uchiha, but I didn't remember much about the rest of the clan. So she told me about my..." she leaned in a bit. "My half-brothers." she whispered.

"Oh! So that's why you were looking for him. Well, only Sasuke is left. So your other half brother is probably dead." he cleaned her bowl.

Satsuki glared at the table and balled her hands into fists. She got up, paid for the food, and left with a thanks. He didn't think anything of it.

-

Sasuke wiped the sweat from his forehead and took a deep breath. He looked around him. The trees had tons of marks on them now, some were laying on their sides, or bent. Throwing knives lay all around him. It was well past lunch now, and he hadn't had anything to eat since his breakfast with Satsuki. Hmm...with Satsuki. It sounded strange.

Speaking of which, where was Satsuki? He got his answer when some leaves rustled and he saw her shoot past through the trees. "Satsuki?" he asked, jumping into the nearest tree and following her.

She ran through the trees as if she were air almost. Sasuke had trouble keeping up. But he persisted and then...she stopped. It was sudden. She stopped, jumped down, and landed on the ground in a clearing. Sasuke stopped and looked down at her, keeping his chakra hidden.

He was surprised when he heard soft noises coming from her. She was laying halfway on the rock, her head in her arms. She was...crying...He nearly fell off the branch. Then she began to mumble to herself.

"Itachi..." this is when he nearly fell off again. "You bastard." he smirked. "How could you do it? They were your family..." she cried harder than ever. "And Sasuke..." Sasuke listened closer. "You left him alone..." she cried.

Sasuke jumped down quietly. She mumbled just a bit more. "But...I will not let you win...You won a battle, Sasuke will win the war. All I can do...is help him..." she cried. Her crying was replaced by silent tears and a gasp as Sasuke placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Satsuki..." he mumbled. She wiped away her tears.

"Oh...Sasuke. How long have you been there?" she was blushing slightly. "I was uh...well..." she looked down at the rock.

"It's ok. I was here the whole time." He said, looking away. She gasped softly again and blushed harder. "Thanks..." he took his hand off her shoulder and stood there, staring off in just some direction.

Satsuki stood up, grabbed Sasuke's hand, and led him off. She smiled softly and led him back to his house. "Take a break. Tomorrow, we train together."

"You just want to see how bad I can beat you." He mumbled in a amused sort of way. She just smiled.

-

That night, Satsuki and Sasuke had a small dinner, made of leftover-leftover chicken and some rice. Sasuke was about to go to bed when he remembered that Satsuki didn't have a bed.

"Hey." he called softly to her. She was still sitting at the table. She looked over at him. "T...Tomorrow...We'll get you an actual bed." he stuttered. She smiled softly.

"Ok. See you tomorrow." she got up, waved slightly, and went to get the bedding out of the closet. Sasuke went into his room.

"Hmm..." he looked around his room. "She'll have a bed...but what about a room?" his eyes were widened slightly at the thought. He shook his head, they'd figure it out tomorrow.

-

Satsuki got up first, took a bath, wrote a short note for Sasuke, and left. Sasuke woke up about 20 minutes later. He yawned, stretched, and got ready. When he found the note he didn't get it. He read it aloud to himself.

"Good morning Sasuke...I've gone out for a minute...I'll be back in about an hour...Signed, Satsuki Uchiha, 6:11 a.m." He yawned silently and threw the note out. "Ok. See ya later then..." he got some breakfast.

-

Satsuki walked through town, she had her hair up like Sasuke's again, and wore her hood like usual. That shadowy guy from yesterday was no longer here. She had a small bag with money in it. All the money she had earned and not spent while traveling.

She walked into a store and looked around. There were many types of food and other products. The walls were basically white or brown. It was small, but nice. She went down each of the few aisles, picking up some stuff. A toothbrush, toothpaste, a bottle of shampoo + conditioner, an outfit like Sakura's only darker, and a hair brush. She walked up to the check out and put her stuff down.

"Welcome." the cashier yawned. "A bit early isn't it? In fact, if it weren't for our 24/7 policy, I'd still be asleep instead of taking this early shift..." he seemed to be in a bad mood, but rang up her stuff without even looking at her. She paid, thanked him, and hurried off with the bag in her hand.

Naruto yawned and looked out his window. A hooded person ran past in the direction of Sasuke's house. He stared out his window for a minute, wondering who the heck was going in that direction. He had heard that someone had come into town yesterday...or the day before that...when was it again? Oh well, time for breakfast. He totally forgot about it after leaving his room to eat.

"I'm home!" Satsuki called as she opened the door and ran into the house with her bag. She laid the bag at the end of the couch, and looked around for Sasuke. He walked out of the bathroom, a smirk on his face.

"Well, time to see who's stronger." he said, walking towards the back door. It led straight into the forest, so they didn't have to take the long way. They started training as soon as they got to the clearing where Sasuke usually trained. It is around 7:30 a.m. when they started.

-

About 2 hours later. Two people jumped from opposite trees and met in midair. They landed with their backs to each other. One turned around, soon followed by the other. Then they both fell on their butts. They both wore basically the same thing, and had almost the same hair style. One looked girlier than the other.

The girlier one laid down on her back. "Whew...I'm bushed..." she sighed. The boy smirked, then fell back. Their clothing was covered with little rips every few centimeters.

"Your...shirt's left sleeve...is gone..." he mumbled. "You'll...need a new shirt..." he moved closer to the nearest tree and laid against it.

"It's alright..." Satsuki said softly, messing with what was left of her sleeve. "I bought a new outfit while I was out..." she was still laying on her back, staring at the sky. Sasuke laughed once.

"You're stronger than I thought you'd be." he wiped the sweat from his face.

"And what were you expecting? A girl who just sat on the side lines, watching the world go by?" she asked.

"Huh? No. Well, kinda." he laid his head against the tree.

"I do." she mumbled, barely audible. "I do watch the world go by...I've sat on the side lines my whole life." she sat up and looked around. Sasuke stared at her.

"Huh?" he didn't understand what she meant. She watched the world go by? She always seemed to be out there, taking life head on. Cracking leaves caught their attention as Naruto walked in.

"9:30! Breakfast is done and waiting time is over. Yep! I usually get up and out here earlier, but I kinda slept in." he said to no one in particular. He was lying, but he lied well. He then noticed them. "Whoa! Two Sasuke's? I can't handle this! I have enough trouble with one!" he started to freak out.

Satsuki laughed. Naruto stopped freaking out and stared at her. "Girl?" he mumbled. Satsuki stopped laughing.

"Of course." She said it like it was obvious. Naruto walked cautiously over to her and began to circle around her. She was still sitting down. "Um...what are you looking for?" she asked, watching him carefully.

"You...don't look like a girl. I mean, your clothing is so baggy. No one can even tell you have breasts." he said plainly. He then had a large red mark on his face and a footprint on his back. "Ow! You slapped me!" he yelled at Satsuki. "And you kicked me!" he yelled at Sasuke.

Sasuke ignored the yelling and leaned against the tree again. He had stood up to kick Naruto of course, so he was leaning against it, not laying against it. "Idiot..." he mumbled.

Satsuki was glaring at Naruto and had her hands across her chest as a girl wearing a thin bathing suit would. "Pervert." she muttered angrily, blushing. She stood up and walked over towards Sasuke.

"Well, you sure act like a girl when it comes to stuff like that." Naruto muttered. Satsuki went to slap him again but he ducked...ok, he tried dodging and fell down. "Geeze! Calm down!" he jumped a few times to get away from her.

"You deserve it!" she yelled. Her blush was gone and the glare was deeper than ever. "You know, they only guy my age that I've met that hasn't been like you...is Sasuke!" she turned around and walked off.

"You?" Naruto pointed to Sasuke. Sasuke kinda...glanced up at Naruto, then watched his half-sister walk off. Naruto laughed. "Oh yea, that's right. So many girls hang around you, and you don't even glance at them." He then had the biggest smile on. "Heh heh. Looks like you finally picked one." Sasuke glared.

"Shut up, idiot." he said shortly.

"I am not an idiot! Oh yea, why was her shirt missing a sleeve? And why were you out here alone?" he asked, dirty thoughts mixing in his head.

"Training. We were sparing." he answered shortly. Naruto's dirty thoughts evaporated.

"Oh." he seemed disappointed. "Well then! How about you and me spar?"

"No." Sasuke said coldly as he walked off. Naruto's jaw dropped 10 in.

"No? But why not? You'll spar with a girl but not with me?" he yelled after him.

"She's stronger than you!" Sasuke yelled back, then began to ignore him.

-

Satsuki was up in the trees, jumping from one to another. She still had on a glare.

"Pervert." she said. "Wait till I meet him again. Wait, what's his name?" she stopped jumping and sat down on a tree branch.

The wind picked up and blew a cold breeze everywhere. Leaves rustled and her left arm began to get cold.

"I should get back and change this shirt." she said softly, jumping down and heading off towards Sasuke's.

-

"Master!" cried a man with a raspy voice.

"Hmm?" asked a man sitting in the shadows. He sat on a large chair, holding a glass. The glass was filled with a strange dark liquid.

"I hear of many strange things while in town yesterday." he said. The smaller man was nearly laying on the ground.

"Hmm? What kind of...strange things? I believe you were in Konohagakure village, yes?" he asked, leaning forward slightly, but still in shadows.

"Yes master. I in Kono...haga-kure village." he stuttered. "many strange things going and coming there." he looked shiftily around the room.

"Hmm..." the taller man said with amusement. He leaned back in his chair. "Explain, Goshi." he twiddled with the glass in his hand, nearly tipping it over.

"I at ramen booth when kid dressed in black come up and order. They is speaking to ramen shop owner guy. You say you only Uchiha left sides brother yes?" he seemed very nervous. "This person say they Uchiha too!"

"What?" he stopped twiddling his glass and glared at Goshi. "What is this Goshi? Some kind of game?"

"No master sir! Never! I eating when they is whispering to owner. Say they is Uchiha!" he groveled.

"Hmm...But I killed all the Uchiha..." he took a sip of his drink. Goshi began explaining himself.

"I would have taken them there and then. But you is saying that Uchiha were strongest ninja. But you stronger! So me come back to see what you think." he said in a scared voice. The man hadn't even listened to the explanation.

"How could this..._Child_ have escaped me when so many others died by my hands?" he muttered to himself. Goshi jumped a the chance to be of service.

"They is saying they was traveling sir!" he got the man's attention. "They says they traveled with mother sir! Saying when mother died they come to find brothers!" He gasped when the man threw his cup down and it shattered on the hard floor.

"Brothers?" he stood up. "Who is this person? Goshi! How did you get this information?"

"Me is eating ramen sir! They is talking very much to owner of ramen shop! Whispering in his ear. Many things going on, talking in quiet voices...I hear of Uchiha and leave, then come back to hear more. Make sure there is no mistake. They is saying they is sibling. Very talkative when no one around..." he snickered, then flinched backwards as the other man began to talk.

"This is inconceivable. How? Show me Goshi!" he jumped down from his chair's spot atop 4 stairs. He has black hair, red eyes, and a look of pure evil.

* * *

**Preview :** "You look like..." he started. Satsuki blushed slightly. "A girl..." she glared at him.

"Of course I look like a girl! I am a girl!" she yelled, punching the table right next to her plate. The table shook.


	7. My room, New Outfits, And A Dark Dream

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

Magerm - Nice name...have a point? I do suppose he sounds like that...never crossed my mind though. Heh. -smile- Anyway, yea, you guessed right.

Vans - I wonder...why would _Itachi_ sound mad? Hmm...-sarcastic kinda- -normal- Anyways, you misspelled Chapter. Heh heh. What was the taste?

**

* * *

Chapter 7 - My Room, New Outfits, And A Dark Dream**

**  
**Satsuki and Sasuke met again near Sasuke's house. They then headed out for a bed. They went to a 'furniture' store and looked around. Soon they had chosen one, it was small but nice. Satsuki paid for it and then they left.

While walking home. Sasuke hid behind the bed, away from the eyes of his fan girls. Satsuki took a sudden stop, making them collide. She didn't fall over, he didn't fall over. She was in front of a decoration store. She handed Sasuke the bed, or rather, she laid it next to him. Satsuki came out 5 minutes later with a bag and they headed to the house.

"So...we have a bed, what about a room?" Sasuke asked as they got inside.

"I got these." she showed Sasuke the bag, it was filled with hanging beads, bamboo curtains, and other such things that could hang from the wall and hide what was behind them.

"So...where's the bed going?" he asked.

"Your room, I guess." she muttered, pointed towards his door. He didn't answer for awhile.

"Fine." he said finally. "But you'd best make sure those curtains are well hung." he opened the door to his bedroom and they took the bed in.

After setting it up, Sasuke went to make dinner while Satsuki hung the bead curtains.

"Dinners rea...dy?" he started as he entered the room. His room looked the same except for the fact that a corner of it looked like a dressing room wall. The beads hid the bed, and possibly Satsuki, perfectly.

"Okay. I'll be out in a minute." came Satsuki's voice from behind the curtains.

Sasuke left the room and sat down to eat. Satsuki came out about 30 seconds after he sat down and got her own food. Sasuke ate with his right elbow on the table, eyes closed, and seeming quite indifferent. They ate like this, Satsuki eating normally, until finally Satsuki cleared her throat.

"Hmm?" Sasuke asked, not moving from his position.

"Well? Do you like the outfit?" she asked. Sasuke opened one eye to look at her, then opened both eyes as he got a good look at her.

"You look like..." he started. Satsuki blushed slightly. "A girl..." she glared at him.

"Of course I look like a girl! I am a girl!" she yelled, punching the table right next to her plate. The table shook.

"I know that!" Sasuke yelled...sorta. He was blushing slightly. "It's just...you usually dress like a guy." he said, trying to regain himself. She stopped glaring and stared.

"Oh. Well, that makes sense." She sat down and finished her food.

Sasuke had trouble not looking at her all through the rest of dinner. Her black hair was down, flowing down her back like black water. He noticed her skin was slightly pale from wearing a cloak most times. She had a slightly more developed figure than Sakura and the dress she wore looked great on her. She soon noticed his lack of the ability to not look at her and gave him a suspicious look.

"You're not starting to get lecherous thoughts now are you? Cause I had enough of that when we met that kid in the forest." she was slightly glaring at him. He blushed and began to eat quickly.

"No. It's not that. Just, you're...pretty...kinda." he was blushing deep red now. Soon they finished and she went into her curtained area with a huge smile on.

"I'll probably be gone when you wake up. I'll be back as soon as I can though, k?" she muttered to him as she lay in bed. There was no answer so she supposed he was asleep.

-

"Die!" I heard a voice scream.

"Die! Die!" it repeated.

"Die! Die!" It laughed evilly. "Die!"

I can hear sword slashes and screams. But it's as if I'm blind. All is dark around me and all I can do is listen. The screams of a boy reach my ears and I can see. But the screams are gone. I look around me, but it looks normal, like I had been daydreaming.

People walk around me, going about their everyday lives, I feel short. Why do I feel short? As I look myself over I find I am the size of a 6 year old! Why am I 6 again? A woman grabs my hand and leads me towards the edge of the village. I am wearing black clothing and a ninja headband.

Someone is following us. I turned around to see a boy near a building. He stops as our eyes meet. For a while our eyes stay met, and I am sad. I am sad to have to leave, I am sad to leave the village behind, the people, that boy. Wait! I remember this!

This is the day I left! That boy! With short black hair, dark clothing, and something special about him. I wonder what he did when we left. He had followed us out of the village, but after that moment, my hand is pulled and I'm lead away.

My vision is covered in the darkness of the forest. Where is the boy? He followed us, right? We had connected for a moment, right? Didn't we? He was a Uchiha, wasn't he? Why were we leaving again? My mind is scrambled as we continue to walk. Maybe he was still around, but because I was confused I didn't see him? No, I could have sensed him. Who is he?

"Die!" I hear the voice again. "Die! Die!" the slashes, the screams. Make it stop! Make it stop! "Die!"

He laughs an evil laugh. I can not see. The screams, slashes, and laughter fill my ears, my head. It is all so loud! Now all I hear is one thing. No more slashes, no more laughter, no cries of pain except one. The cry of a boy.

The cry is not of physical pain, but of emotional and mental pain. Something terrible happened.

He is hurt,

_I can smell the blood. _

He lost something dear to him,

_I can feel his sorrow. _

He is angry at the laughing man,

_I can sense his anger._

-

Satsuki woke up with a jump. It was a dream? She had dreamt of the day she left, the cries of the Uchiha's when they died still filled her head. She shook them out and then took a quick shower.

"What time is it?" she asked herself, checking the clock. 4:52 a.m. She sighed and got dressed in her dark-Sakura-like outfit. She ate a small breakfast and checked the clock. 5:18 a.m. She sighed again and left.

Sasuke would wake up in a couple of hours, but she'd be home by then. She walked into a shop with the logo of a dress on it. Inside she found many, many, many rows of dresses, pants, shirts, etc. She picked out some jeans and a medium blue t-shirt. She got a black trench coat, black leather gloves, black, non-tight leather pants, and a white t-shirt with a 'yin-yang' sign on it.

She got one other outfit. It consisted of all the things Sasuke's outfit consisted of (except the jacket!), and a hooded cloak-thing. She had to keep that one...The thing she didn't have was the Uchiha Clan jacket. Satsuki paid and headed back to Sasuke's place. People were just starting to wake up, and not many of them.

"Morning is so boring. Except for the morning itself, just morning life." Satsuki entered Sasuke's house and into her beaded area. She had hung a short rod from the wall to hang clothing from so she wouldn't have to use Sasuke's closet.

She hung her clothing up, even if it wasn't meant to be hung up...like the shirts. Satsuki then went to make Sasuke breakfast. She was just finishing the eggs and putting some toast on a plate when Sasuke walked out.

"Morning Sasuke." she greeted, he stared sleepily at her before finally getting it.

"Oh.. Right.. Hi. I have training with Kakashi and my team today...I have to be there at 7, but Kakashi won't arrive till noon." he yawned, taking his plate and eyeing the food suspiciously.

"I didn't poison it. Actually, I just finished it. Also, it's ok that you have training with your team today. I understand that whole complex. Just, I never had a team. I wasn't here for that, so I'll have to train by myself today." she said with a cheerful tone.

Sasuke eyed her with an amazed look on as he began eating. Why was he surprised? He always trained by himself. So she was a girl, so what? She trained by herself while she traveled right? Yea...that's right, no reason to be surprised. He ate his food and then left to meet Naruto and Sakura. Satsuki climbed onto the roof.

When Sasuke was out of view, Satsuki looked over at all the buildings. She saw their position and size, and sometimes she saw the front door. Satsuki tried to remember the layout of the town. Then she turned to the forest, jumped down, and went to train. While up on the roof she saw that a lot of people were going to meeting places today. So no one would be in the forest.

* * *

**Preview :** Satsuki walked through the forest, not making much noise. It was a nice day. Evil eyes watched from the shadows. A hand motioned towards another man, and then towards Satsuki. Satsuki was oblivious. Then she sensedthe chakra...

I know, short chapters...Sorry about that.


	8. Title Too LongCheck Chapter

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Little Wolf Blossom **- Is this soon enough for you? I'm glad that Satsuki is appealing to my reviewers. I was kinda worried about that, but then again I wasn't. I try to make my Ocs...recognizable? Heh, if I look at my stories, all my stories have characters that act the same...or...basically...I need to work on that...;;;;;

**Magerm **- Ah, interesting. Those are my sister's initials! -smile- Blabber is the main source of conversation and starts most friendships by letting others know what you're interested in! Don't apologize! I'm glad you like my story! -smile-

Blabber Note : Has anyone ever heard The Distance by Evan and Jaron? It's a really nice song, so look it up! -big smile- I downloaded it on my sister's iMesh 5! I've been listening to it almost non stop as I read depressing stories...Nighttime is good for such things in my opinion! -quirky smile- Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**Chapter 8 - An Assassination Syndicate, Naruto's Senses, and Unseen Trouble  
**

Sasuke walked up to the bridge where they were supposed to meet Kakashi. Sakura and Naruto were already there, Naruto looked tired so he had just gotten there. Sakura yawned, but as soon as Sasuke was within arms reach she seemed to be filled with all the energy that everyone else lacked in the morning put together.

"Hey Sasuke! What the heck is going on, huh? Who's that girl?" she got right in his face. Sasuke backed up a step and went around her to lean against the fence.

"She's nobody. Just leave her alone." is all he said. Naruto looked from Sakura to Sasuke to Sakura to Sasuke to...you get the idea. Then he sparked as he realized who it was they were talking about.

"Oh! You mean that girl that looks like you but isn't you and that slapped me for asking why she wore clothing that made it so you couldn't tell she had breasts?" SLAP! "Hey! Why'd you slap me?" he asked Sakura.

"How could you ask a girl that?" she yelled. "That is so...argh! I can't stand you!" she crossed her arms and put her back to Naruto.

"Ohhhh...man. Now Sakura's mad at me too." he sat down on the ground and pouted.

'_How are they so energetic in the morning? It's annoying..._' Sasuke thought as a burst of wind caught them and Kakashi arrived...at 7:30.

"Morning kids! See? I didn't get lost today." he smiled...well, it seemed he was smiling but you can't really tell he even has a mouth when he wears that mask thing now can you?

"Hello Sensei." Sakura and Naruto answered.

"Today, I have an assignment, instead of just training." he said, lightly losing his morning hyper ness.

"Cool! Let's get to it!" Naruto yelled with enthusiasm. Sasuke plugged his ears.

"What exactly are we doing?" he asked. Kakashi smiled.

"We have to go survey the area." he said, not losing any enthusiasm. Naruto drooped.

"What? That's not training at all!" he whined. Sakura was with him on that but wouldn't have told anyone if her life depended on it.

"Well. It will be if we meet anyone."

"I'm lost." Naruto said.

"There are reports that a ninja assassination syndicate is in the area. We are supposed to go and see if they have any truth to them." He seemed happy, but was nervous about what would happen if they met an assassin on the road.

"Oh! Great! Let's go!" Naruto had his enthusiasm back. Soon they headed off.

-

Satsuki was training in the woods like she did with Sasuke, just...by herself. Nothing unexpected was happening. She had climbed most of a tree, making marks like the boys did, and at the next jump she was sure she'd make the top. Satsuki concentrated, ran, jumped onto the tree, and ran up it. She mis-stepped near the very top and grabbed the top of the tree so she wouldn't fall.

Falling from this height was a very dangerous and possibly lethal thing. She looked around. This was a great view. Off in the distance she saw the village, and further yet, very far away she saw what looked like another, smaller village. She watched as a bird took flight, flew above her, and landed somewhere to her right.

To her left she heard voices. At first she didn't pay attention. It was just some guy warning the people with him that it was dangerous out here. Then the voice of the pervert ninja caught in her ears, followed by the girl with pink hair's voice, telling him was an idiot.

"Naruto! Squirrels don't attack people, and bears eat fish!" she rolled her eyes.

"I-I knew that!" he shot back.

"No you didn't." she sighed.

Satsuki marked the top of the tree and then jumped from branch to branch until she reached one of the lower branches. She looked out at the path. It was very uneven and poorly cut through the forest, but it was a path. On the road was a man with his headband covering his eye and grayish hair, the yellow haired pervert ninja that she now knew as Naruto, the pink haired girl that liked Sasuke, and...Sasuke! That girl must be Sakura then.

'_I'm leaving. Sakura and Naruto are probably already there by now. And who knows, master Kakashi might show up on time today.' _she remembered Sasuke saying. Sakura and Naruto continued bickering as the neared level with the tree Satsuki was hidden in. Naruto passed close by, Sasuke was on the other side of the road, Sakura was in the middle and Kakashi was out in front. Kakashi made the two stop fighting and they continued in silence. They were now level with the tree.

Her foot slipped as she watched and 3 leaves fell to the ground, making a slight rustling noise that was hardly audible. Naruto stopped, turned, threw a kunai at the hidden Satsuki, drawing the others attention, and then continued to stare in the direction he'd heard the noise.

"What did you hear this time Naruto? Another rabbit, like when we had our first (and only) A level mission?" Sakura asked with a snapping tone.

"No. I seriously heard something. It was right there. Someone is _right there_." he inched closer.

"Well Mr. Hot Shot Ninja, I don't see a body falling out of the trees. Must have been a false alarm, or you just trying to show off." Sakura snapped. Then she ignored him again. Naruto gaped and then pouted, about 6 feet from the tree.

Sasuke and Kakashi were staring at the tree, and were ignoring the other two. Satsuki, still hidden, was in an awkward position. The kunai had come very close to hitting her in the head, right next to her left cheek, and had a bit of her hair pinned to the tree. She was keeping her breathing silent, but if you had heard it, you would know she was nervous...scared maybe.

Kakashi smiled and beckoned them on.

"No dead body, no sticking around. We need to finish surveying." he said it like this was a field trip. Sasuke was still looking at the tree as the others continued. He walked towards it and moved the leaves out of the way.

"Satsuki?" he muttered. Satsuki stopped looking at the kunai and looked at Sasuke.

"That...was way to close." she mumbled as she pulled the kunai out.

"Are you following me?" he asked. She stared at him like he had accused her of murder.

"No, of course not." she looked up at the top of the tree with a proud look. "I just finished climbing this tree and was enjoying the view when I heard their voices." she motioned towards the others. Speaking of which!

"Sasuke! What are you doing?" Sakura called. "You're getting left behind!"

Satsuki was sitting on the trees lowest branch so she was still hidden in the leaves. "You'd best go." she smirked and jumped up and out of view.

Sasuke looked around for a minute but didn't see her anymore so followed the others. They didn't even ask what he was doing because they supposed he was checking for a body. Satsuki was up about 6 branches, watching them walk off. When they were far enough, she jumped down and began to walk off. The day was unfolding and was very interesting.

Satsuki walked through the forest, not making much noise. It was a nice day. Evil eyes watched from the shadows. A hand motioned towards another man, and then towards Satsuki. Satsuki was oblivious. Then she sensed a chakra.

"Who's there?" she yelled, turning around. A net/bag came down over her head. "Ah!" she screamed, then all that anyone could hear was muffled yells and curses because she was in the bag.

* * *

**Preview :** "Who Sasuke? Who?" Sakura asked.

"Satsuki..." he muttered. It seemed he was talking to himself.

"Who?" Naruto asked.

**Warning :** Sasuke will be slightly more OOC next chapter...around the time of the preview...


	9. When Reality Hits Home

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Little Wolf Blossom - **Sorry for the wait, bad connection. I'm glad that you wouldn't mind, makes me feel better about my other stories. -smile-

**Vans -** I had a weird taste in my mouth yesterday too! Also, you misspelled more words this time than last time. Brain dead lately? -smile- -laugh- anyways, I agree about the kidnaping thing. Why call it 'kid'-naping?

**Raye -** Raye-Nhi! -laughs- I updated this as soon as I could, so I hope you like it. And even though I only have you in one class and see you at lunch, Hello buddy! -big smile-

**

* * *

Chapter 9 - When Reality Hits Home**

"AH!" echoed across the forest. Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi looked over where birds were flying fast away from. Sasuke recognized the scream immediately. He took off towards where the scream came from. Sakura and the others followed soon after.

"Sasuke!" Sakura called as she tried to follow and keep up with him. "Sasuke wait up!" he didn't slow down.

"He's just...trying to show off." Naruto huffed and puffed as he sped up, getting ahead of Sakura, but still behind Sasuke. Sakura glared at Naruto and ran as fast as she could. Kakashi was nowhere in sight.

Sasuke stopped when he could no longer here the sound of any animals. The forest was empty in this area. "Where is everything?" he asked.

"It's so quiet. It's eerie..." Sakura said softly as she caught up.

"So. What's with the running?" Naruto asked Sasuke.

"I..." he saw Kakashi kneeling close to the ground a little ways away. "Master Kakashi!" he ran over.

Kakashi held out a hand to stop Sasuke. Then he points to the ground. "Look at the ground." Sasuke looked and saw foot-prints. Large ones. There was also marks as if someone, who had smaller feet, had been wearing a cloak. And there was a straight line like someone had been walking. The walking feet stopped, the dirt was smeared as they possibly turned around when the other feet entered the scene. Sasuke could see it now.

Satsuki was walking when the other feet came up behind her, the leader wearing a cloak. She turned around to look at them, and that's when she screamed. Damn it! Sasuke closed his eyes.

"These are the footprints of a female..." Kakashi said as he examined the footprints of the one that seemed to turn around. Sasuke's eyes snapped open. He stared at Kakashi for a minute, Sakura gasped and covered her mouth. Naruto was sniffing the ground as if he were a dog trying to pick up a scent.

"A girl?" Sakura said from behind her hand. Kakashi nodded.

"I suspect she was kidnapped." he said, staring determinedly at the marks. Sasuke balled his hands into fists and then fell to his knees and punched the ground with both fists. His eyes were still closed and his face was near the dirt.

"What's wrong Sasuke?" Sakura asked. Naruto stared at him.

"Damn it!" Sasuke screamed. "Damn it!" Kakashi gave him a sympathizing look.

"Sasuke? Do you know who was kidnapped?" Sakura asked in a quiet voice. She put her hand out as if to put it on his shoulder, but he flinched away from it.

"Yea, I know who it was. It was the girl Naruto threw a kunai at." Naruto laughed.

"See! I told you there was someone there!" Sakura glared.

"He barely missed, she had been training near there when she heard us coming. She left after I found her in the leaves." he seemed really upset.

"Who Sasuke? Who?" Sakura asked.

"Satsuki..." he muttered. It seemed he was talking to himself.

"Who?" Naruto asked.

"My sister..." he was still sitting on the ground, and two lonely tears fell from his face. Again Sakura gasped.

"But...Sasuke...You're the only Uchiha left. How could you have a sister?" she asked.

-

"Hokage..." Kakashi spoke.

"Yes Kakashi? Did you finish surveying the local area?" Hokage asked.

"Yes sir. The area around the city did indeed have some kind of syndicate hiding in it. They...captured her."

"What?"

"The girl, Satsuki. She was in the forest today. I saw her hiding in the leaves earlier. Naruto threw a kunai at her, thankfully it missed. Sasuke knows she's gone. It's hit him pretty hard."

"Yes. Reality really sucks sometimes, don't you agree Kakashi? I think this hurts more than most realities, because I think that they truly had a growing family bond. And when you lose family, there is a deep wound. Now he's gone through it twice. Is that fair Kakashi? For one to be injured, then to be healed, and injured once more when that healing presence is gone?" Hokage got up and stared out his window.

"No. It's terrible. What should we do?" Kakashi asked. Hokage gave him a grave, yet amused look.

"We? We don't do much. All we can really do is leave the fates of the youth, in the hands of the youth." he stared out his window again.

Kakashi sighed, he wasn't used to sitting by and letting kids go full on into what was a very dangerous situation.

-

Sakura had wanted to stay with Sasuke after the forest incident, but he just said he wanted to be alone.

"_But...Sasuke...You're the only Uchiha left. How could you have a sister?" Sakura asked. Sasuke stood up slowly and then turned his head to look at Sakura. He glared at her, but it didn't live up. His eyes showed a pain that no one had seen there for many years, so his glare wasn't backed up. _

"_I think that is best left for another time." Kakashi offered. He put a hand on Sakura's right shoulder and Sasuke's left shoulder. Sasuke shook him off and head for his house. Naruto had a sympathetic look on. _

"_Sasuke!" Sakura called after him. "I'll go with you!" She came level with Sasuke. _

"_No." he said angrily. "I want to be alone." He then stopped and stayed very still. He shook it off and walked quickly away. _

_Sakura had a hurt look on. Kakashi had a sympathetic look that beat Naruto's. _

"_He doesn't really...want to be alone. I mean...if I'd had family, and they were taken away...I would probably act like that too. But I wouldn't mean it." Naruto said softly before running off. Sakura looked back at him. _

'_Now he sounds like he understands the world and peoples feelings better than most people. Everyone can seem so wise at times...' she stared after Naruto, then turned to Kakashi. _

"_He's right." she said solemnly. Kakashi shrugged and jumped out of view. Sakura headed for home._

"Naruto was right..." she admitted to herself. "I shouldn't have left him all alone after that." She looked determined. "I'm gonna go to his house! I'll bust down the door and make him let me help!" she walked firmly out of her house.

She saw Naruto creeping in the same direction she was headed. "Soft as a mouse...but no squeaking...soft as a-"

"Hey Naruto!" Sakura called. He fell over. "What are you doing?" she asked, walking over. Naruto sat up.

"What does it look like? I'm...I'm going to that idiots house." he looked away.

"Why? You and he are rivals. You hate each other."

"Yea, well...I just get the feeling he's gonna do something really stupid." so he jumped up and ran off, Sakura close behind.

They came to Sasuke's house, and it was quiet. They looked around, knocked, everything, but Sasuke didn't answer. A soft footstep caught Naruto's attention and he walked around back. Sasuke was leaving through the backdoor. He looked ready for battle.

"Ha!" Naruto called. Sasuke flinched, then looked at Naruto with an annoyed look on. "I knew you were up to something.

"Sasuke? What are you doing?" Sakura asked.

"What does it look like? I'm going to save Satsuki." he looked at the ground and then at his kunai.

"Alone?" Sakura asked, unbelieving. Sasuke didn't answer.

"No!" Naruto answered for him. They both looked at Naruto. "Because we're going too!"

"What?" Sasuke and Sakura said at the same time.

"Yea! I'm not letting you have all the cool adventures! I'm coming too! And I'm sure Sakura will join us." he looked excited.

"Yea! I'll come too! Give me 3 minutes." she ran off.

"I'll give her 2." Sasuke said shortly. Naruto ran off and came back about 10 seconds later.

"I'm ready!" he said proudly.

"Nice job minuteman." Sasuke muttered.

"Hey! Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Depends. You like being the idiot who charges into battle after taking a minute or less to get ready?"

Naruto growled. The seconds passed. Soon it would pass the 2 minutes mark. Sakura was no where is sight.

"Two minutes. Times up. Let's go." Sasuke said. Then they heard huffing and puffing as Sakura came running.

"Wait for me!" she yelled. "I'm...here..." she gasped for breath.

"Ok! Let's go! No more delays!" Naruto charged two steps forward.

"Uh, this way..." Sakura pointed to Naruto's left.

"How do you know?" he snapped.

"Because. That's an area where syndicates are known to hang out. If she has been taken by one, they'd probably be there." she explained, looking superior.

"Fine. We'll start there." Sasuke walked off in that direction.

* * *

**Preview :** "Damn."

"Ah, you're awake." came a voice. Satsuki turned to look at them.

He walked up to the cage, into her area of vision. He had black hair, red eyes, and wore a cloak. He wore a headband too. Of the Konohagakure village? It had a slash through it...

"Who?" she asked, moving backwards a bit. He laughed.


	10. Entering the ‘Fortress’

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Little Wolf Blossom - Just** going on impulse here...YES! YOU GUESSED IT! Smart! -takes a few deep breaths- Ok, did I really make it _that_ hard that people have to guess who it is?...Or is it just that people, like me, like to guess at the outcome instead of outright stating it and getting it wrong? Or maybe it's just what reviewers do...hm...Lemme contemplate this a bit, in the mean time, enjoy the chapter!

**Aznpuffyhair -** -blink- -blink- -points- what's with your _name_? LOVE the comment about my story, and sadly -tear- Itachi is bad in my story. At the time of completion of this story, I hated Itachi's guts. Give me the right story and I could _still_ hate his guts while reading, but actually...I find he is very misunderstood and in need of someone who can look at him, see into his soul, and try to explain and organize a lot of the crap that's in there so other's can understand him too! -blink- oh, I went off there for a minute...

**Vans **- Korn...Korn...I checked them out on Aol Music and...Falling Away From Me...made _no_ sense to me...sorry...and no, you spelled a lot better this time. I'm actually surprised that _I'm_ not brain dead yet. -silly face- And, YOU ARE LUCKY! School just starting for you...-tears-

**b0rEdToDeAtH -** Interesting name. -smile- Here's the chapter.

Is it true we aren't supposed to respond to reviews anymore? -sad face- Why do I ask? CAUSE I WONT STAND FOR IT! We, as Authors and Authoresses, have a responsibility to our reviewers to respond to them, let them know we care and appreciate them, and to answer their questions in a direct and appropriate manner without spoiling the story plots. So WHY are they even CONSIDERING banning that? If we must be deleted because we continue responding, then let our frozen or forgotten voices be heard! WE WILL NOT STOP RESPONDING TO OUR REVIEWERS!

-Reb next to her looking defiant as well-

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**Chapter 10 - Entering the 'Fortress' **

"Put her there." a low voice ordered.

A bag was opened, and the body of a girl was dumped into a large cage. She was unconscious, and she still looked like a boy, mostly.

"Sir? Why do you want this one?" questioned a man with short black hair and dark eyes.

"She is the key to further torturing my younger brother."

"You like to harm others don't you?" he said.

"No...I like to beat others. I am the strongest, meaning that no one is as strong as me. It's boring. So I must anger my brother, make him train, then he will be my only worthy challenger." he explained, sitting down in a chair. He removed his cloak.

"Ah. So, what shall we do with her?" he asked.

"Chain her to the 'floor' of that cage. Make sure she does not escape. My brother is no doubt searching for her now." he smirked evilly and ordered for his drink to be brought in. "I've made good for myself. Let's see how good." he took a sip from his cup.

-

"Sasuke!" Sakura called. "Sasuke! Wait up! This isn't a race!"

"It is! It's a race against time, against Itachi, and against ill fate. It is a race. He's a ruthless killer Sakura!" Sasuke was racing along the path...if you could call it that, through the forest.

"Sakura. Just, leave him alone." Naruto said, catching up with the panting Sakura.

They had been running for a few hours, but because they didn't all run at the same speed, they weren't making much progress...well, Sasuke was... He seemed to be a bullet shot from a gun, and nothing can stop a bullet except a wall...or some other solid object. But this was a living bullet, and it swerved around the solid objects.

"Naruto! How can you say that? One, you hate him. Two, If he keeps this up, he'll leave us behind and have to fight them all alone!" she snapped, taking a deep breath and running off again.

"Oh come on! Why do you hate me so much Sakura?" Naruto yelled before following.

-

Satsuki opened one eye, then closed it. She remembered what had happened and her eyes shot open. She took in her surroundings, okay, she took in the cage. The room was dark so she couldn't see. She saw metal bars, thicker than any she'd ever seen in her life, with 1 ft spacing between each one.

'_tsk, idiots. I can squeeze through there easily.'_ she stood up on one knee, only to be brought back to the floor.

She looked and saw that her wrists and ankles were chained. She was chained to the floor of this cage! Satsuki pulled at them as hard as she could, but they too were thick and didn't give an inch.

"Damn."

"Ah, you're awake." came a voice. Satsuki turned to look at them.

He walked up to the cage, into her area of vision. He had black hair, red eyes, and wore a cloak. He wore a headband too. Of the Konohagakure village? It had a slash through it...

"Who?" she asked, moving backwards a bit. He laughed.

"Me? How pathetic. I could've sworn you already knew that." he smirked, put his right hand on his hip, and looked at her like he was amused at some animal at the zoo. Satsuki thought, and it clicked. He did seem familiar, he wore a headband of the village, and he looked slightly like her.

"I-Itachi!" she growled, glaring. He laughed again.

"Great job! You're not as slow as you look. Perhaps you'll be stronger than my pathetic brother. I have yet to test your skills. But so far, you have a weak defense." he smirked evilly.

"So what?" she glared at him. "I don't care what you think! You're an evil maniac that has no compassion for ANYONE!" tears came from her eyes. "Not even your own family!" she had the same angry tone though.

"Heh. They were weak. Sasuke was weak too. But he seemed interesting, so I let him live. Besides, where's the fun in killing off a clan and leaving no one behind to suffer?" he laughed evilly as he began to walk off. He stopped and turned around. "Oh, by the way. I have compassion, for myself." he then walked out of her view.

"Evil scum!" she yelled into the darkness.

No answer came. She let the tears fall, she didn't care for her pride at the moment. She thought she would meet this evil man with Sasuke, but she's facing him alone. That is partially why the tears streamed down her face, partially from sorrow for all those he'd killed. She hung her head, sitting on the cold floor, and the light that gave her her small viewing area dimmed. Soon she was in total darkness.

-

Sasuke stopped abruptly. He hid behind a tree.

"Sasuke. Wha-" Sasuke held up a hand to silence Naruto. Sakura looked around the tree.

There were many men there. All of them dressed in dark apparel. They carried swords, throwing stars, or other weapons. Most of them had kunai at their waists. Behind them was a small door. It seemed insignificant, so small, not leading anywhere. But Sakura knew that it wasn't insignificant. Behind that door were the steps that would lead to the base of a large mercenary group.

"I've come to take over the watch." one of the men said. The other man grunted, apparently a man of few words. "Did you hear? The boss found himself an interest." Another grunt-like sound. "It's said to be a girl." No answer. "Well? Do you have any information on her?"

"Yes. I was on watch when they brought her in. Brought it in a bag. Unconscious. She's supposed to be a 'relative.' " then heavy feet were heard as he walked off.

"Humph. I hate guys like that. I guess it's better to have a quiet guy when you're killing someone." he shrugged and stood guard.

Sakura turned to Sasuke. He wasn't facing the men, but had a determined look on. Sakura was worried. Both about how they would accomplish this, and how rash Sasuke would be. Sasuke slid down to the ground, his expression stayed the same though.

"She was brought in in a bag?" Naruto asked, staring at the guy on guard. Then he crossed his arms and sat down. "How do you get caught in a bag?"

"Naruto! Don't make fun! This is serious!" Sakura yelled.

"Who's there?" the guard man yelled, running over.

"Damn." Sasuke stood up, glaring at Naruto and Sakura. "See why I was gonna come alone?" he threw out his arm and thrust up, catching the man in the jaw. "Let's go!"

Men were running over in groups now. Naruto had used his doppelgangers to fight them off while him, Sakura, and Sasuke ran into the door. They busted it open because the lock was...well, locked. They saw stairs and began running down. The yells of the guards and other men were soon lost as they ran down.

"Where do we go now?" Sakura asked as they ran.

"I don't know. First we get down these stairs. Then we see what's down there." Sasuke said.

After a minute they saw a large darkness, meaning the end of the stairs. The room was dark except for a torch lit on the other side of the room. _'Torch?' _

They walked into the room slowly, their footsteps quiet and cautious. No one jumped at them, so they quickened their pace and soon reached the torch.

"Where's the door?" Naruto asked, feeling the wall. Sakura and Sasuke were looking too. Sasuke was looking in the room's darkness. Sakura was searching the wall on the other side of the torch.

"Found it!" Sakura called, pulling open a door. "Ah!" she was hit with a kunai in the side.

"Sakura!" Naruto called. Sasuke ran over to help her. "What- Whoa!"

A man, six feet tall, muscle bound, glared down at them. He held kunai in his hands and gave them a threatening look.

"Who are you?" he asked in a deep voice.

"And why should we tell you?" Naruto asked being a smart-aleck.

"I am the body-guard...of the boss. You need to have confirmation to enter here." He lit a torch near him, apparently this place was made to be VERY dark. After getting a good look at them he asked, "Are you part of this group?"

Naruto glared at him. "Again, why should we tell you?"

"You can not enter here without either being part of this organization, being a prisoner, or unless you have a meeting with the boss." He said in a threatening voice.

Sasuke stepped forward. "Prisoners are taken through this door, correct?"

"Yes."

"Let me through."

"Why?"

"I want to see the prisoner that was last brought in." He gave Sasuke a questioning look. "A girl! Brought in a bag!"

"Oh. That's right. Tell me your name." He laughed.

"Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke said coldly. The guard nearly dropped his kunai.

"Uchiha?" nod. "Enter." Sasuke swept past him fast. Sakura went to follow him, supported by Naruto because she was injured. "No. You may not enter."

Sakura glared at him, so did Naruto. After a moment, Sasuke was gone from sight and Naruto sighed. "Come on Sakura."

"What?" she groaned from pain as she jumped up and tried running. "What...are you saying? We came to help!"

"Yea, but you're injured. Sasuke can handle this." He stared nervously into the darkness behind the guard, then turned and left, half carrying Sakura.

* * *

**Preview :** "Sasuke!" She yelled, running as fast as she could. Itachi yelled, threw the dagger, and then fell to the ground holding his injured leg. "Ah..." she stopped running, stopped moving, and fell slowly to the ground.

Yes, hate my evil, cliff-hanging preview! -evil laughter-


	11. Uchiha Itachi

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors - for the record, I can't write a fight scene to save my life.**

**Vans - **Yesh...Itachi twisted...heh heh heh...Yes, 'skool' did start already. On the 3rd. Stupid 5 am ness...T.T anyways, hope you enjoy.

**Aznpuffyhair - **Heh heh, my hair is unresponsive to taming too. Itachi ooc, and I know it...-cry- -over it-

**Little Wolf Blossom - **heh, ok then. Enjoy the chapter!

**

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Chapter 11 - Itachi Uchiha**

Sasuke ran into a dark room. No lighting what so ever. But still he could make out the outline of a few objects. A chair, and a large something he couldn't tell squat of. He squinted around, and then heard the slight splash of liquid. His head flipped to where the chair looking object across the room. He also heard the sound of moving metal, but paid no mind.

A light flicked on and shown in it's light a large chair, in it was a man. He was Itachi.

"Itachi." Sasuke nearly growled.

"Ah brother. Long time no see. Well, I couldn't exactly say that. I saw you the other day when I stole her away. But we didn't have a chance to speak." he tilted the glass he had, then took a sip of it. "How have you been?"

"Living in hell." The sound of chains moving caught his ears again and he turned his head towards the larger thing in the shadows.

"Ah. I almost forgot!" Itachi laughed. He snapped his fingers and a light came on. It illuminated a cage where Satsuki was chained to the floor. She covered her eyes from the sudden light. "I have a gift for you!"

"Satsuki!" Sasuke called. She looked over at him again.

"Sasuke! He's chained me in this cage!" DUH! "I can't help you."

"Idiot. I'm here to help you." he said. Laughing caught their attentions and they turned their heads to look at Itachi.

"Brother!" he said loudly. "Didn't you forget? This is a gift from me to you." he laughed again. Sasuke got a dreading feeling. Gifts from Itachi were evil. He was grabbed around the arms by 2 large men. One was the man that had been guarding the door. Itachi snapped his fingers.

"Itachi. You bastard! What are you thinking?" Sasuke asked as Satsuki's cage was lifted, okay, the walls were raised. The floor of the cage remained, and was then rolled over towards Itachi, who stood up.

"Just a gift...of pain." he smirked evilly. Sasuke's eyes widened. He struggled against the two men, but was held still. "I see you've grown close to this girl." He drew something out of his pocket and showed it to Sasuke. It was a sheathed object.

"Leave her alone! Don't hurt her!" he yelled threateningly.

"Dear brother. You are in no position to tell me what to do." he unsheathed it, revealing it to be a dagger. "This girl is also a member of our family, of those who lived in Konohagakure village. So I will also kill her to re-test my strength." he raised the dagger above his head, poised to kill.

"Satsuki! Move! Break the chains!" Sasuke yelled.

"I've tried! Do you think I was in here for pleasure?" she yelled at Sasuke. Her attention was brought back to Itachi as he brought the dagger down. "Ah!" she lifted her arms up in self defense. The dagger missed her, and hit the chains directly. The chains cracked, but no one noticed.

"Damn you! Move your hands!" he pushed her hands out of the way and thrust the dagger at her again.

"Satsuki!" Sasuke cried. Satsuki went to dodge, forgetting about the chains. She flipped over, the dagger landing where her head had been. The chains snapped, and broke into many many many pieces.

"Huh?" Satsuki stared at her wrists. Then grabbed her ankles and began to work the chains off. "Damn!" They weren't coming off. She searched herself and found a dagger that had been missed when they had taken her weapons. "Thank you lord." She grabbed it and cracked her chains with it.

Itachi growled and threw the dagger at her. She rolled forward and thrust the kunai into his leg. "Damn you!" He yelled. His men gasped, released Sasuke and ran to help Itachi.

"Sir!" they all yelled.

"Back off you idiots!" he grabbed his dagger and began slashing madly, killing more than a few of his men. "Come here you wench!" he yelled, chasing Satsuki off the platform.

"Satsuki! This way!" Sasuke yelled, kunai out, beckoning her forward.

"Sasuke!" She yelled, running as fast as she could. Itachi yelled, threw the dagger, and then fell to the ground holding his injured leg. "Ah..." she stopped running, stopped moving, and fell slowly to the ground.

"No." Sasuke ran over to her, picked her up slightly, and felt his hand get wet. The lights in the room gave enough light for him to see his hand covered in blood. "No. Satsuki! Satsuki, are you alright?" he pulled the dagger out and turned her over. She smiled.

"I'm fine Sasuke. Really. I'm supposed to help you, right? I'm supposed to help you beat Itachi." she coughed, and blood came out. "Look, leave me be. I'll be fine. Go fight." she pushed him away, falling to the floor again. Sasuke reluctantly went over to fight Itachi, but he was gone.

"Damn you, Itachi." he mumbled angrily under his breath. Then he turned to Satsuki, picked her up and put her arm over his shoulder, and helped her out.

-

"Dang it. We gotta get back in there..." Sakura kept trying to get back up, but Naruto, or pain, kept her down.

"They'll be fine." he kept assuring her.

They were surrounded by the bodies of the men. They were either dead or knocked out, at least the 'real' Naruto hadn't killed them. They heard slow footsteps coming from the open doorway, they hadn't closed it, and looked over. Sasuke came out with Satsuki hanging halfway on him, bleeding badly.

"What happened?" Naruto asked, running over. Satsuki's hair was down and messy, her clothing was ripped only slightly, but she was covered in blood.

"Itachi stabbed her in the back..." Sasuke said softly, laying her down. "We need to get her help."

"Sasuke..." Sakura said, walking over slowly. "Is she even...alive still?" Satsuki did look dead, and Sasuke was suddenly filled with fear.

"Satsuki? Satsuki?" he shook her. Her eyes opened slowly, and she turned to look at them.

"Oh, hey guys. You're the pervert, and you're...the girl with a crush on Sasuke..." she smirked. "And I told myself I was gonna beat your butt next time we met." she said to Naruto.

"Like you could." Naruto scoffed. She sat up.

"Lay down. You shouldn't sit up." Sakura said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Like I told Sasuke. I'll be fine." she coughed softly and looked around. "Wow...you guys showed 'em." she smirked. It slowly began to rain, washing away the blood that Satsuki had spilled. Satsuki paused, then fell to the ground again.

"Satsuki?" Sasuke asked, shaking her. "Satsuki? Satsuki!" he might have been crying now, but the rain was so hard that you couldn't tell the difference. Naruto closed his eyes in frustration and Sakura was visibly crying.

-

"Hokage sir!" Kakashi ran up to Hokage, panting.

"Yes Kakashi?" he asked in his usual calm voice.

"It's...It's Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and Satsuki. They're back." he panted. "But Satsuki, she's badly injured. She...she might die!"

"What?" he raced out, ordering for medics immediately. He ran into the entrance room, to see Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and Satsuki there. They were soaked, both in rain and blood from carrying Satsuki.

"Let me see her." he rushed over and felt her pulse. It was very slow, and she was getting cold. "She needs medical attention, and fast. Where are the medics?" he yelled. Doctors came rushing in and took Satsuki out of the room. Hokage turned his worried gaze on the others. "Sakura, go with them." she did.

"Sir. Will she be alright?" Naruto asked.

"She...should be fine." he said in his normal voice. He turned his gaze to Sasuke, who was sitting on the ground. His head was bowed, eyes hidden from view. Soft sounds would be heard, if it wasn't pouring oceans outside. "Sasuke." he said softly. Sasuke took a moment, but then raised his head to look at Hokage.

"Yes sir." he asked in a voice unlike his own. Hokage's gaze became more caring and sorry than before. Sasuke brought up an arm to hide his face and wiped his 'face' (actually his eyes, but don't tell him that) with his sleeve. He then brought it down and stared at Hokage with the same cold stare he usually did, but it had more sadness than before now.

"Don't worry so much. The doctors will inform me of her condition as soon as they are sure of it. I'm sure she will be fine." he said in a confident voice. Sasuke smiled shortly at him, then frowned again.

"I'll be at home..." he turned and walked out into the wind and rain. Naruto watched him leave, then turned to Hokage.

"Liar."

"What?"

"You have no idea if she'll be okay or not. But you get Sasuke's hopes up." he scoffed.

"No. Sasuke's hopes are not up at all. His hopes are lower than the ocean bottom." Hokage then turned and walked out. Naruto got up, turned, and sat in a chair near the door.**

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Preview : The room was dark, only a small light near the bed was on. On the bed was a girl with long black hair that was bandaged heavily. She seemed to be asleep. He walked over carefully and sat down in the chair next to the bed silently.**

Not very informative, is it? heh heh...just wait till the next one...heh heh heh...


	12. When the Smoke Clears

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors - Sorry for the wait, only excuse is...I FORGOT!**

**Vans - **I know he's OOC, but _when I wrote this_ I didn't know how calm and collected Itachi seems. I had this...image in my head! But now I know more, and I can't say I _totally_ hate him. You Are So Lucky! School registration...We've _been_ in school! -cry-

**Raye-Nhi - **I will respond to the reviewers! But ya know, whether she dies or not is my decision and my decision alone. I may want to torment my favorite character, as I love to do, no da? -blink- -wide eyes- I'M MIMICKING CHICHIRI! -calms- anyways, I'll give you a hint, k? -wink- this is chapter...12, and the story is 18 chapters long..._guess._

**

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Chapter 12 - When the Smoke Clears **

Sasuke walked into his house after walking slowly through the rain. He didn't mind the rain, and today he felt numb. Maybe it's because he had been in the rain a while. Whatever, it didn't matter. He took a quick shower and then dried off. Sasuke got ready for the day instead of the night. It was dark outside but he didn't care. He would be ready at a moments notice to go back to the Hokage's place.

He sat on his bed for awhile, listening to the rain. After about 30 minutes though, he couldn't stay still and began to walk back and forth in his room. Time seemed to be going slower today, like it wanted to torment him, and was working for his brother. He opened his bedroom door and walked into his living room.

"I'm bored. I need to keep myself busy." he told himself, looking around. Cleaning? No, he only did that when needed. Cooking? No, he wasn't hungry. What then? Nothing. He'd just sit and wait...and wait...and wait...

Another hour went by, and Sasuke sat on the couch in many positions. Laying on his head, halfway off the couch, hanging over the back, and others. He sighed while hanging off the right arm of the couch and stood up. This was pointless.

He checked outside, it was still raining. So he picked up his jacket and headed for the door. Then he noticed something, as he reached for the doorknob a thought hit him. He took off his jacket, and went through his house looking for what he needed. The Uchiha clan all had one thing in common, the family seal. Satsuki didn't have this seal, as far as he knew, but she was his half-sister. She needed to wear the seal.

-

"Sakura. Sakura wake up." came Naruto's voice. Sakura opened her eyes and sat up.

"N-Naruto?" she said sleepily. "What...what happened?" she asked.

"Well, you were bandaged and given this bed...Satsuki though, they haven't told me anything. I hate being uninformed." He crossed his arms as she sat up.

"Wow. You used a big word correctly." she said tiredly.

"I'm not an idiot ya know. I do have some brains." he scoffed. If he didn't like Sakura she'd be in trouble right now for sure.

"Of course." she smiled.

"Huh?"

"You're a nice guy Naruto. Just...a bit stupid, pigheaded, and clumsy at times."

"Uh...thanks...I think." he sweat-dropped.

-

Sasuke looked at the jacket laid on his couch. It was dark blue, like his, and had the Uchiha fan symbol on the back. He smiled for a split second, the wrapped it up and got his jacket on. He put the packaged jacket in his jacket pocket and headed for Hokage's.

Five minutes later, Sasuke arrived. He walked through the door and squeezed the water out of his shirt and shook the water out of his hair.

"Is it still coming down out there?" came a familiar voice.

"Master Kakashi?" he looked up at his leader.

"Yep. Nice to see you when you're not covered in blood." he smirked.

"Oh yea, I have a question." Sasuke said. "Why didn't you or some other adult go and get Satsuki?" he seemed angry.

"Oh...well...that's a tough one..." he seemed to think really hard. "Hokage said no." came his blunt reply.

"What?"

"He said to 'leave the fate of the youth, in the hands of the youth.' So, I wasn't allowed to help." he shrugged and walked off.

"Huh?" Sasuke muttered, this was confusing. Kakashi paused and turned around.

"You can go see your friends now too." he said in a chipper mood, then he turned on his heel and walked off smiling.

Sasuke scoffed, "Why's he so happy?"

He wiped the water from his face with his sleeve, then walked over towards the medical wing. He knocked on the door softly then opened the door and walked in.

"Sasuke!" Sakura cheered, standing up. She had gotten off her bed and was now sitting in the 'waiting' room. Yea right, more like another 'torture' room. He got hugged by Sakura who then blushed furiously and sat down in a chair. "Sorry."

"Whatever." he said in his usual cold voice. He looked around. "Where's Naruto? Wasn't he here with you?"

"Oh. He's...hmm...where is he?" she looked around, but he wasn't in the room.

"Family only? My foot!" Naruto burst through a door on the other side of the room. Several angry looking doctors glared as he left. The door slammed shut behind him.

"Naruto? When did you go back there?" Sakura asked.

"While you were reading that book." he snapped.

"What's wrong?" she asked, he usually wasn't mean to her.

"The stupid doctors won't let me see Satsuki." He now has Sasuke's attention. "They say 'only family' can see her. Bull! Then who's gonna..." he looked at Sasuke and smirked.

"What?" Sasuke asked.

"You're family, right?" he smirked like he had a devious plan.

"Uh...right..."

"Great!" he grabbed Sasuke and pushed him through the door.

"Why did you do that?" Sakura asked when the door was shut.

"Because." he smiled wide.

-

"Only family of the patients are allowed back here." a female doctor said to Sasuke as he walked further back.

"Oh, I know." he answered, turning around to face her.

"Mister Uchiha? Who's here that's your family?" she asked with slightly wide eyes.

"Uh...Satsuki." he said unsurely.

"Who? Oh! That girl with the stab wound. You're related?" Nod. "Well, that's a first. She's in the last room."

"Uh...thanks." he waved and walked down the hall.

About a minute later he came to the end of the hall to the last room. On the door was a sign that said, 'Name - Satsuki, Gender - Female, Age - 12, Family - Unknown"

"Heh, shows what they know." he said under his breath before opening the door.

The room was dark, only a small light near the bed was on. On the bed was a girl with long black hair that was bandaged heavily. She seemed to be asleep. He walked over carefully and sat down in the chair next to the bed silently. Sasuke looked around and found a book laying near him. He picked it up and began reading.

'Boring' he laid the book down on the desk again.

"Sasuke?"

"Huh?" Sasuke looked at Satsuki. Her eyes were open but she didn't turn her head. "Satsuki? Are you alright?" She smirked and nodded.

"Yea. I'm fine." her eyes closed as she smiled. "I actually thought I was going to die."

"You aren't going to die." Sasuke assured her. She nodded again.

"I know. But if I had, if I had died...I don't think I would care much..."

"What?"

"You see...My whole life was spent, not really knowing me. I lived with my mom, and we traveled. When she died, I was sad. But at that time, I had a purpose. That purpose was to find my family, to find you."

Sasuke just listened.

"After I found you, I was complete. I didn't need to worry about anything anymore. Then Hokage told me the whole truth about the downfall of our clan. I again had a purpose, to help you fight him"

"Itachi." Sasuke nearly spat. Satsuki nodded again.

"But I just seem to be trouble for you..."

"No. Of course not. You're my sister. If you are a pain, it's just natural, as far as I've heard, brothers and sisters are supposed to get on each others nerves." he smirked at the thought. Satsuki smirked but didn't answer. "Satsuki?"

He relaxed when he saw she was asleep. 'She must be tired.' He laid the package on the table next to her bed, then got up and left.

* * *

**Preview :** _'If I leave now...if I don't look back...I can leave it all behind...'_

Ha! Suffer the one sentence preview! Mwuahahahahahahahaha! -cough- right...


	13. Uchiha Sasuke

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors - I haven't updated for more than a MONTH! OMG! Sorry!1**

**Magerm - **Quite alright. I have trouble with my computer a lot too. -small smile-

**

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Chapter 13 - Uchiha Sasuke**

Satsuki stayed in the hospital for another week before she was allowed to stay at Sasuke's house again. Sasuke visited frequently and even managed to get Naruto and Sakura passes to visit whenever they wanted. Soon she was up and moving, but was told to take it easy. So she walked to Sasuke's house in the early morning to keep from drawing attention.

"Sasuke. I'm back." she said in her usual voice.

"Satsuki?" Sasuke looked up from his breakfast. "What're you doing here so early?"

"I didn't want to draw attention to myself. So I came early." she explained, sitting down.

"Oh. Ok." he got up and cleaned his plate off, done with breakfast. "I was going to come and pick you up."

"Yea. But you're not to perky in the mornings..." she smiled and grabbed the box that held her breakfast. "I suppose you were going to bring this with you too?"

"Yea." as he said this she opened the box and began eating.

"So. Do you have training today?" she asked. Sasuke had had a lot of training in the last week, she supposed this was normal but they had been slacking. Sasuke nodded. "Great, you train, I'll sit down and...do something." she looked around as she spoke.

Sasuke didn't look like he wanted to go to training today. He was ready and everything, but still looked reluctant.

"You were going to use getting me as an excuse to skip out weren't you?" she smirked at Sasuke, who looked away.

"No."

"Whatever." she waved her hand as if to brush a thought away and stood up to clean her plate. "You should get going." she motioned towards the door.

Sasuke muttered something under his breath but left anyways. Satsuki smirked at the door and then went walking around the house. She laid down on the couch and stared at the ceiling, where little pieces of paper were tapped. She took a pencil and threw it at the ceiling, it hit, leaving a small pencil mark and then falling back down.

"Heh." she did this for about an hour. The pencil got stuck on the roof after that amount of time. Then she fell asleep. The pencil dropped from the ceiling and landed on the ground next to the couch.

Sasuke arrived back about 6 hours later... no,_ 7 _hours, whatever. Around noon Sasuke opened the front door. "I'm home." it still seemed weird to say that when he opened the door.

He looked around and didn't see anyone, but noticed the ceiling near the couch was covered in paper. He walked over to see Satsuki sleeping. He smiled, then noticed the pencil on the ground and picked it up. He put two and two together, Satsuki had been targeting the paper and throwing the pencil at them.

He put a hand on her shoulder and shook lightly. "Hey. Hey Satsuki." she mumbled a groan. "You hungry or not? I'm only making lunch once."

She opened her right eye and glanced over at him as if to say, 'But I'm tired! Make it later!' he just shook his head and went to make his lunch. She rolled over so that she was facing the back of the couch. Sasuke finished making lunch and began eating, making sure that the smell of it went over to Satsuki. She fought it off, because she wasn't really hungry, but the smell of cooked food made her hungry and she soon turned over and gave him a pleading look.

"Can I have some?" she asked in a small, child-like voice. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"There's more in there." he said in a uninterested way, she smiled and ran to get some.

Satsuki sat down across from Sasuke. They didn't talk...they just ate...quietly. Soon Sasuke was up and cleaning his plate, Satsuki right behind him.

"Are you going back out now that you've eaten?" Satsuki asked. He nodded. "Well, I'll see you later then." she smiled. Sasuke looked both confused and freaked out by that smile...

"Bye." Sasuke then left again. Satsuki dropped the smile act.

She opened her jacket, which she'd gotten from the hospital, and took out a package. She opened it and found the jacket with the Uchiha clan fan on it. Satsuki closed her eyes to keep from crying.

"I'm sorry Sasuke." she muttered, turning and running down the hall. The jacket fell to the floor, still partially wrapped. She ran to Sasuke's room, behind the curtains and began to rip her stuff down. She took the bag she'd used before moving here and stuff her stuff inside. Satsuki threw it over her shoulder and ran back to the living room.

'To leave...is the hardest thing!' her mind was yelling. 'Forgive me!' Tears began falling from her eyes as she ran out the back door, dropping a piece of paper on the counter as she ran. 'If I leave now...if I don't look back...I can leave it all behind...'

**

* * *

Preview : "To chose the hardest path...turns it all upside down. Dreams become nightmares, comfort becomes pain. Friends become enemies, or even worse...strangers. Memories haunt you and though they can't remember, those dearest to you fall to pieces. Help to pick up the pieces, and the world is born anew."**


	14. The Hardest Thing

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Only Reye-Nhi reviewed...-tear- Yea...-waves halfheartedly- I'll...see you at school...Nhi...-tear-**

**

* * *

Chapter 14 - The Hardest Thing**

"Satsuki?" Sasuke was searching his house for his half sister. He'd come back to find she was nowhere in sight. "Satsuki!" he ran into his room and saw that the beads were parted and Satsuki's stuff was gone. "Idiot." he ran into the kitchen and saw the paper.

"_Dearest brother,_

_I am so sorry to put you through all this trouble. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have had to face your brother until you were stronger. You'd still be the famous solo man with no family. Your fridge would still be stocked full of left overs that you could eat later. Heh._

_Please forgive me. To leave...is the hardest thing. Please forgive me. But as far as the world is concerned, I don't exist anymore. My name will soon be erased from everyone's memory, and only those I met personally will know I was ever here. I'm sorry._

_To leave would indeed be the hardest thing, but I'm sure it is the right thing. I shall still help and protect you as I can, I promised I would...but now I'll do it from a distance. 'Leave the fate of the youth, in the hands of the youth.' Hokage said it, right?_

_Sasuke, I pray that we meet again someday. I wish I didn't have to leave. But sometimes the right path, Is the hardest. Stay with your friends; Naruto, he cares for you as if you two were brothers, and he's not to bad a guy. Sakura, she either loves you or has a silly fantasy of the perfect guy in her head._

_And yourself mostly Sasuke. You have to be alive for us to see each other again, right? Take care, for I chose the hardest path...Wish me luck. Then try to forget...As I will...try._

_Signed,_

_Uchiha Satsuki"_

"Dammit." Sasuke ran into the living room, crumpling the letter as he went. Suddenly he stepped on something and looked down.

He had stepped on a package. Inside was a jacket with the Uchiha fan symbol on it. The wrapping was slightly wet, so he knew Satsuki was really sad to go. But _why_ did she go? She was running from something. From becoming too attached.

As Sasuke had learned, so had Satsuki. They had learned to never become too involved, or become too attached. Because it can be taken away in the blink of an eye. Nothing lasts forever. But why did she _leave_?

Sasuke sat on his bed, against the wall. In his hands he held the jacket he'd given Satsuki. His knees were drawn to his chest and he wrapped his arms around his knees. The jacket he laid around his shoulders, and he pretended that this was all a nightmare.

"_Sasuke? Saasuukee"_ a voice called.

Sasuke opened his eyes and looked around. He was laying in his bed, leaning against the wall. His legs were out straight and someone was laying in his lap. It was a younger version of Satsuki. The way she looked the first time he saw her, as a child.

"Hi Sasuke." she said in a slightly sad voice, she was soooo cute!

"What are you doing here?" he asked her. She trembled.

"I had a bad dream. You were gone. There was this...empty feeling right here." she put her hand over her heart. "It hurt...and I thought I'd never see you again." she began to whimper, but not cry. Sasuke ran his right hand over her head, then held her close.

"Don't worry. It was just a dream. It wasn't real. Just...a dream." he opened his eyes again and realized what he'd said. "It was all...just a dream?" he asked himself in a hushed voice.

"To chose the hardest path...turns it all upside down. Dreams become nightmares, comfort becomes pain. Friends become enemies, or even worse...strangers. Memories haunt you and though they can't remember, those dearest to you fall to pieces. Help to pick up the pieces, and the world is born anew."

Sasuke looked down at the girl he was holding. She was the older version on Satsuki, the one who had found him in the woods only a few weeks ago it seemed.

"Nothing can last forever, but everything can last a while. Pick up the shards, and forget your pain. For the world is a wonderful place, and all ends meet. Never, ever let go. Sasuke..."

She had begun to fade away. Her voice became like a distant memory...a memory from some dream...

_"Never forget...Sasuke...never forget...the past"_ her last two words echoed around him.

His eyes opened and he scanned his room. Her last words still echoing in his head.

"I will never forget...the past." He said softly, pulling Satsuki's discarded jacket closer around him as he laid down in bed and slowly drifted off into an uneventful and dreamless sleep.

-

"Sasuke!" Sakura called, running at the bridge where they all met. He glanced at her, then looked back at the ground. "Are you still sad? Satsuki'll be fine. Don't worry!" she pat Sasuke on the back. He scoffed softly.

'_She's still gone...'_ he thought. Sasuke looked to the sky. _'It's been almost a half a year Satsuki. Where are you?'_

"Stop being so moody, Sasuke. From personal experience I know that Satsuki can take care of herself." Naruto said, jumping from somewhere below the bridge, onto the bridge. "Good Morning Sakura."

"Yea yea...morning, though how good it is is all your own opinion." she said with a frown. Naruto frowned.

"What'd I do?" he asked. Suddenly there was a 'pop!' as Kakashi appeared.

"Morning!" he said cheerfully. "Today's lesson is easy."

"Better be. I've been here since 8. _It's 11_." Sasuke said angrily.

"8? Alright then. I'll get on with it. All you have to do is run around the town about oh...5 times." he smiled again.

"5? Can't we go 4?" Naruto and Sakura asked at once.

"What? I had you running around the town 20 times last week. What's 5?" Kakashi asked, amused. Sasuke had already taken off. "Sasuke goes around 5 times, you two go around 6. Just for complaining." he laughed and vanished.

"Damn." Sakura muttered. Naruto and her then took off.

-

Satsuki paused in her walking. She had long since left the forests around Konohagakure village. But still, she felt that she was so close, close enough that is she were to step just beyond those trees...She'd be in Sasuke's house once more...

She shook her head. Why was she thinking of that again? It had been almost 6 months since she left. Sometimes she wished she hadn't left. But as she had written to Sasuke, this was the right thing to do...right?

"Come on. Snap out of it. Huh?" Satsuki looked at her hand, where a drop of water was. "Rain?" she took off in a direction, not caring where she went, as long as it meant shelter.

She found shelter in a small cave in a hillside. Satsuki sat against the wall after making a small fire.

"What's with the weather? One second it's sunny and cloud free, then it's pouring rain...I hope Sasuke isn't outside training right now..." she paused, realizing how random that thought was. "I will still help and protect you, I promised I would, I'll just be doing it from a distance." She remembered saying something to that effect.

The world was laughing at her. Mocking her. Or maybe it just mocked he name of Uchiha...She hoped that Itachi was hurting right now. A pain in her heart suddenly caught her attention, and a thought passed swiftly through her head.

"Never forget...the past?" had she ever said that? Satsuki didn't remember saying it...but the words were so familiar. "Sasuke." she stood up, put out the fire, and ran out of the cave into the pouring rain.

**

* * *

Preview : "Hello. Were you waiting for me?" the girl asked. He nodded. "Yay! Let's play a game, okay?"**

"Game?" he asked.

"Yep. Let's play tag!" she took off into the woods.

...Confused, yea, thought so. I laugh at your confusion! -evil laughter- -cough-


	15. Where We Belong

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**

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Chapter 15 - Where We Belong**

Sasuke paused in running as it began to rain.

"Strange weather..." He muttered. He was on his last lap around town...he'd head home, that way he would finish his training and get out of the rain at the same time.

He was running through the part of town that he used to live in, with his parents and a lot of other Uchihas. He saw the building he'd hidden behind when he'd first seen Satsuki, as she left with her mom. He rounded the building and suddenly heard laughter, talking, the rain had stopped.

All around him Sasuke could see people, people who had been dead for years. They were the Uchihas that had been walking around he day he'd first seen Satsuki..What was this? He could no longer feel the rain, see the dark clouds. He walked toward the building near the edge of the town. And Sasuke saw...Satsuki.

She was a younger version, the one who had left with her mother. Her mother was no where in sight, but she was wearing the same clothes as that day...Something about her seemed, magical...foreboding possibly. He took a step towards her and mini Satsuki turned to face him. He knelt in front of her.

"Hello. Were you waiting for me?" the girl asked. He nodded. "Yay! Let's play a game, okay?"

"Game?" he asked.

"Yep. Let's play tag!" she took off into the woods.

"Hey! Satsuki! Wait!" Sasuke took off after her.

He kept running, but Sasuke soon lost track of the girl. She was no where in sight.

"Satsuki? Satsuki! Where'd you go? Come back Satsuki!" he called, then he stopped running. "Why am I calling for the memory of someone who isn't coming back?" he asked himself. Sasuke began walking towards his house. The illusion like vision that had enveloped him disappeared, and the rain began to fall once again.

Sasuke got to his house 5 minutes later. He put his hand on the doorknob when he heard a noise. He went around back but didn't see anything. He turned to go in through the back and saw Satsuki's coat was hanging in the window.

"I forgot to put that up..." he muttered.

One footstep...two footsteps...someone was behind him...he turned around and saw her. The sound of the rain was dulled. Her hair was longer than the last time he had seen her, but her eyes were still the same. Just as deep, just as noble looking as ever. Was he imagining things? He'd imagined her returning before, why would now be any different?

She dropped her bag off her shoulder, it hit the ground with a small splash. Sasuki ran towards her half brother, crying. Before Sasuke knew what was happening, he was being hugged by her.

"Sat-" he began.

"I'm sorry Sasuke." she broke in. "I never should have left. I can't protect you from a distance. The uncertainty of whether you're still alive to protect...I don't want that anymore. I'll stay here okay? I'll protect you from here...I'll never forget..." she fell to the ground, bringing Sasuke down too. Now they were sitting on the ground, Satsuki hugging Sasuke.

"Satsuki." Sasuke said as the rain began to soften. "You'll never forget?" he asked.

"I heard...in my head. 'Never forget the past'...like a secret bond of some sort to the earth maybe...It helped me decide to come back..." she looked at his astonished face.

"I heard it the day you left." he muttered. She looked surprised, so Sasuke changed the subject. "I kept your jacket." he pointed to the jacket that was just out of the rains reach.

They went inside and Sasuke gave her the jacket. "Sasuke..." she mumbled, holding the jacket.

"You're a Uchiha. You have the headband of the Konohagakure village of Hidden in the Leaf. You are my sister. You've survived Itachi Uchiha. You deserve and must wear this jacket. Unless you don't want to were it in town, that's fine also." Sasuke said in a serious tone. Satsuki smiled.

"Thanks." _'You want me to know that I belong to your family. But you don't want others to know.'_ she thought as she put the jacket on. Satsuki smiled.

"Go take a shower and get changed. You're all wet with rain water." Sasuke ordered monotonously and went to sit in a chair with a book.

"Alright." she walked down the hallway and to the bathroom. "Huh?" next to the bathroom was a calendar, It hadn't been there last time she was here...

The day she left was marked on it, she saw this while flipping through it. The page fell down to reveal the current month. Her gaze fell upon a date two days from now and she gasped softly. Satsuki smiled a wide smile as she went to take a shower.

-

Satsuki and Sasuke walked to the bridge together at 8 the next day. The rain had made everything muddy and smell funny. They sat at the bridge for a few hours in silence before Sakura showed up.

"Hey Sasu...ke? Satsuki! You're back!" Sakura hugged her friend. Satsuki smirked and Sakura's eyes widened. "What?" Sasuke looked over and Satsuki glared at Sakura, but then smiled.

"Did I hear the word Satsuki?" Naruto jumped up. "You're back!" he hugged her and got slapped. "Ow!" she leaned near his ear and hissed at him.

"Never, hug me." she hissed something else, and Naruto jumped back from her.

"What's going on?" Sasuke asked. Naruto jumped away from Sasuke too.

"Nothing! A-absolutely nothing...Don't hit me." he hid behind Sakura.

"Why are you hiding behind _me_?"

"Because Satsuki will hurt me too."

There was a poof as Kakashi appeared. "Morning! Ah, I see she's here today."

"What do you mean by that?" Sasuke asked in a dangerous voice. "You sound like you know something."

He smirked. "We sensed her chakra coming back to the city. She wasn't exactly hiding it." when he got worried looks from all of them he continued. "Don't worry. It wasn't spanning out. Just, flowing. It was like she was...sending a signal!" he used the idea to make an example.

"A signal?" Satsuki asked.

"Yep." he smiled. "Chakra signals can send out S.O.S. messages, messages to fellow ninja on your team, and more. I think you were focused fully on your trip back, so your chakra was sent out." he smiled wider, if you could tell from the mask.

"Ah..." Satsuki stared at Kakashi and focused on her thoughts. Kakashi blinked, then turned to everyone else.

"10 laps, then I'm taking you out to help Mrs. Rotu so hurry up." he ordered. All four of them began, but Kakashi grabbed Satsuki by the wrist. "Satsuki excluded sense it's her first day back." he smiled.

Sasuke glared at his sensei, expecting his perverted-ness. Satsuki gave him a look that said she could handle herself, wrenching her wrist from his grip. Sakura glanced worriedly from Satsuki to Kakashi, then nodded and ran off, knowing that Satsuki could handle herself by the look on her face. Naruto was already gone.

Sakura and Sasuke took off, Sasuke soon taking a bit of a lead on Sakura. Kakashi turned to Satsuki and smiled. "Great. You can send signals." he laughed a bit, then shut up.

"Are you done?" Satsuki asked.

"Yep." he nodded. "So, what did you want to talk about? Something about a calender?" She half nodded.

"Sasuke's birthday is tomorrow. I saw yesterday on the calender near his bathroom. I wanted to throw him a party, even if it's small, just the team. But we can't hold it at our house...hm...our house...sounds strange." she sat on the railing to the bridge.

Kakashi smiled at the simplicity. "Sounds like a great idea." he placed a hand on her shoulder. "You go train, I'll talk to Hokage."

"Hokage?" she asked, looking up at Kakashi.

"Mm-hm...I've got an idea." he then poofed away.

"Hmph, old man." she scoffed, but smiled and ran off.

**

* * *

Preview : "Where?"**

"That cute little stable on the edge of town. They have horses, pigs, chickens, you name it." Satsuki smiled after swallowing her cereal.

"And you want me to meet you there today, why?" he asked. She just smiled.

"No reason. Who knows, I might have a surprise for you." she hinted, then stood up and went to leave. "See ya later B boy!" she then left.


	16. The Greatest Birthday Gift?

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Jess : OMG! You've all ABANDONED ME! -cries softly in a corner-**

**Reb : No reviews in...-checks- 3 chapters. -looks at dejected Vietnamese girl standing next to her- No Nhi, you don't count. We know you from school. -girls walks out- Dudes...what happened to you? -sudden, fake wide eyes- Did you _die?_**

**

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Chapter 16 - The Greatest Birthday Gift?**

"Ah!" Satsuki fell from above the ladder, still holding the banner.

"Watch out!" Sakura called, jumping below her just in time to catch Satsuki. "Whew..."

"Ow...Sorry Sakura." Satsuki apologized, getting up.

"It's ok." Sakura stood up too. "But you need to be more careful. Remember, Hokage said we could have a small party in this room, which is huge compared to my room, but we have to be careful. Our safety is up to us."

"Uh, yea. Thanks." Satsuki climbed the ladder and pinned the banner up. "How's it look?"

Sakura backed up and read the banner. It was white with red boarders and written in bold black letters was "Happy Birthday Sasuke" below that, in much smaller letters was "from all of us."

"Great job. And it's almost perfectly straight as far as banners go I think." she smiled and looked around the room as Satsuki got down.

There was a table to one side that had chips, cookies, dip, and an assortment of other snacks. At the end was a round turner with a lid. Satsuki and Sakura smiled at the thought of the large cake they would set there just as Satsuki went to get Sasuke.

Balloons and streamers were on the walls and Satsuki thought it was great, except one detail. She frowned. Sakura noticed this.

"What's wrong?" she asked. Satsuki motioned towards the colorful streamers, banners, and balloons.

"Sasuke...he's dark and mysterious." she put her hands to her chest. "I just don't know what he'll think of all this color."

"Well, we can't make he whole thing black. It'd be a funeral, not a party." Sakura said, placing her hands on her hips.

Satsuki smiled and pulled Sakura along to one of the tables. This one was where some people would be sitting. Ok, they only had a few tables. Only a few people were coming. Kakashi, Iruka, Sakura, Naruto, and Satsuki that was it. The tables had no fancy clothes on them, just set tables. There were 3 tables, 2 at each table. Satsuki and Sasuke, being the siblings, would have one table. On their left would be Iruka and Kakashi, on the right would be Naruto and Sakura unless they switched places with someone else.

"Uh, Satsuki..." Naruto started.

"Hmm?" Satsuki stopped looking around and looked at Naruto.

"It's about 1:00 p.m. already." he motioned towards the clock. Satsuki freaked and ran out.

"I'll be back with Sasuke! Be ready!" was all they heard besides her footsteps as she ran.

-

_"Huh?" Sasuke asked mid milk pour into breakfast that morning. "Where?"_

_"That cute little stable on the edge of town. They have horses, pigs, chickens, you name it." Satsuki smiled after swallowing her cereal._

_"And you want me to meet you there today, why?" he asked. She just smiled._

_"No reason. Who knows, I might have a surprise for you." she hinted, then stood up and went to leave. "See ya later B boy!" she then left._

_"B boy? Surprise?" Sasuke wondered. Then it clicked and he checked the calendar he'd set up. "Damn, she saw the calendar. I never celebrate my birthday...What's she up to?" he contemplated this. "Worst is she told the whole town about this and I'll be publically humiliated forever. Most likely? She got me a gift." he smirked and decided to go. "1:00 it is Satsuki."_

-

Satsuki huffed and skidded to a stop. She looked at the clock near the stables. 1:05...5 minutes late. Was Sasuke here?

"Sasuke?" she asked. No answer. "Sasuke?" she walked inside. Satsuki was about to call him again when she heard talking and stopped.

"So, what do you think she's up to? Satsuki seems to be planning something. If she were any other girl in town, I expect her to kiss me. But seeing as how we're related, I'm guessing a extra expensive gift, or a handmade one."

It was Sasuke. He was sitting down near a large grey horse's stall, a cat in his lap and the horse seemed to be listening too. Sasuke was talking to the animals. He checked the wall clock.

"She's 6 minutes late." he pointed out. Satsuki took a step towards him and the cat jumped out of Sasuke's lap and onto Satsuki's shoulder. "Huh? Oh, Satsuki." he blushed slightly at being seen talking to animals.

"That was sweet Sasuke." she smiled, pulling the cat off. She was wearing a long jacket, so her clothes were pretty much unseen, but hey, no big deal, lots of girls dressed like that. Ok, that was a lie. All other girls dressed skimpy to get guys attention, except Hinata, and Satsuki, and he supposed Sakura didn't either...Ok, so a lot of girls didn't. But a lot did too!

"It was nothing. Never speak of it again." he said coldly. Satsuki paused a moment and frowned, then placed her hands behind her back and smiled. "What?"

"Nothing. But we need to get going." she smiled widely, then stood up and regained her usual small smile ness.

"Going? Where?" he asked, suspicious.

"You'll see...or, maybe you won't." she laughed. Sasuke was confused until she took her hands out from behind her back and he suddenly couldn't see.

"What the-?" he asked. The horse backed away and the cat was gone. "What are you doing Satsuki?" he went for the blindfold, but Satsuki, who was now behind him, put his hands down.

"I don't want you to see until we get there!" She said, you could hear the smile in her voice. "Just go with it."

They walked, and walked, and walked. Sasuke supposed they were taking the long way to wherever it was they were going so as not to draw attention. After all, he was blindfolded and no body really knew her.

He walked up some steps and then through a few doors. They paused, and all was quiet. Strangely quiet. He looked around, but couldn't see anything. Sasuke wondered if the Sharingin could see through blindfolds, but supposed he would have to copy a technique like that first. Then he really noticed the silence.

"Satsuki?" he asked. He heard a few noises, a grunt and a small yipe as someone fell over. Then a few footsteps.

"Yea?" Satsuki asked, somewhat out of breath.

"Where are we?" he asked in a serious tone.

He _heard_ Satsuki smile, then the blindfold began coming off. This didn't help, he was in a large hallway and was standing in front of two large doors. The walls were white and the only furniture besides a few chairs along the walls was a screen like traditional japanese girls used to change behind. He blinked when he saw the jacket, shoes, shirt, and shorts that Satsuki had been wearing were hanging on or near the screen.

"Satsuki?" he asked, turning to face his half-sister. He took a step back and nearly hit the doors. "W-what are you wearing?"

She was wearing a black dress that wasn't anything flashy, but was better than casual. She was also wearing her headband, like usual, non high-heeled dress shoes, and a jacket. She looked like a girl that had just come back from a date. Her boyfriend had won her a toy ninja headband and had given her his jacket. She had very little make-up on, but he had to admit she looked rather cute in that outfit.

"What?" she asked, looking herself over. "Is it too much?"

"Ok, what is going on here?" Sasuke asked, regaining his usual demeanor. She sweat-dropped, then pushed open the doors.

The room was dark, Sasuke couldn't see much except a few outlines. He walked in and the doors shut behind him, he couldn't see Satsuki either now.

"Happy Birthday!" came many voices as the lights came on. Sasuke had jumped back and reached for his kunai to find they weren't there. _Satsuki must've taken them when we met at the stables..._

He saw that everyone was moderately dressed up. Naruto wasn't, he was in his usual clothing, as was Kakashi. Sakura was wearing a fancier outfit than usual, it was dark red with lighter red bordering and pink symbols with the black on it from her usual outfit too. Iruka had on a vest that was an olive green and his usual black attire with special shoes on and his hair was up like usual. Apparently, only Sakura had a nice outfit to wear...well, except Satsuki. Her outfit was nice too. Sasuke had to admit that Satsuki looked good in a dress. He mentally hit himself after that thought.

"A party?" Sasuke asked, looking around the room.

"Yep. Satsuki found out your birthday and we got to work as soon as Hokage gave us this room." Iruka explained.

"She decided to keep the list of guests small." Kakashi explained.

"Like how we decorated?" Naruto asked with enthusiasm. Sasuke looked at the room with slight disapproval on his face. Sakura gave one, half hearted laugh. The guys had begun to talk amongst themselves.

"Satsuki said you wouldn't approve of the color. She said you were more of a 'dark and mysterious' person. But hey, funeral, party." she acted like she was weighing them. "Party sounds better right?" she smiled and hugged him. "Happy Birthday Sasuke...oh!"she stood up and blushed before walking to the other side of the room.

"Um...ok..." Sasuke still hadn't fully accepted the idea that his half sister, or anybody for that matter, was celebrating his birthday.

"S-sasuke?" came a timid voice behind him. He turned around and saw Satsuki standing there. Sakura was pulling Naruto off of Kakashi after he'd said something stupid.

"Huh? What?" he asked.

"Happy Birthday." she said with a slight smile. "Now, tell the truth. How do you like the outfit?"

"Huh? Uh...it's...it's great." he didn't know how to respond. Things he _could've_ said rang through his head.

"_You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen!"_ No, makes me sound like I'm in love with her...in a strange way...Or that we're married...

"_I like your other clothes better"_ No! Makes me sound mean. Of _course_ I liked her other clothes better, they looked like mine and she always wore them. I was _used_ _to_ those clothes! But she _does_ look good in a dress...Ah!

"_Satsuki...You look absolutely wonderful!"_ Um...cut out the absolutely, and maybe...-_hug-_ No!

Sasuke shook his head slightly and blinked to rid himself of the thoughts. Satsuki frowned when he shook his head and then smiled smally and spun.

"Are you sure you don't like it?" she asked. Sasuke peered at her. She was getting at something, what though? When she spun he caught a glimpse of something. She stopped and he walked behind her. Satsuki smiled contently, obviously happy he'd seen whatever it was.

Sasuke rounded his sister and saw that the jacket she was wearing was...the jacket he'd fixed up. The one with the Uchiha clan symbol on it. The fan, the color, this jacket was exactly like his. She was wearing it for the first time in public. The second time ever. He smiled and walked back to the front.

"Uchiha" was all he said, with a smirk. She smirked too. Satsuki looked about to speak when Sakura called to her.

"Satsuki! It's not going to be this fresh forever!" she called. Sasuke looked from Sakura to Satsuki.

"What?" he asked, not sure he wanted to know.

"Over there." she pushed Sasuke over to the food table, to the round turner. Sasuke now knew what it was, but played along. They lifted the turned to reveal a cake with 13 non-lit candles on the edges. Kakashi used his chakra and blew fire. The candles were lit and Iruka turned the lights off again.

After a round of 'Happy Birthday To You' and the second chorus as well (sung only by Satsuki and Naruto), everyone sat down and Iruka turned the lights on again. Iruka'd be sitting with Naruto, Sakura had found refuge from the boy with Kakashi. Kakashi was already serving the cake when he sat down.

"So, do you like your birthday so far?" Satsuki asked, surveying the room. Sasuke smiled a simple smile.

"Yea. Your gift is the best thing anyone's given me since before Itachi." he glared involuntarily as he spoke the name. Satsuki placed her hand on Sasuke's, re-drawing his attention to her.

"Don't talk about Itachi. Not on your birthday." she said, smiling sadly. He nodded and she withdrew her hand. Soon Kakashi gave the signal, and everyone began to eat...after Sasuke took the first bite of course.

**

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Preview : _'I'm touching Sasuke and he isn't glaring or trying to pull away!' _Inner Sakura was jumping for joy. Outer Sakura smiled. A hand was placed on Sakura's, it was Sasuke's. He looked up, a small smile...very small, on his face. They stared into each other's eyes until laughing was heard.** Inner Sakura was jumping for joy. Outer Sakura smiled. A hand was placed on Sakura's, it was Sasuke's. He looked up, a small smile...very small, on his face. They stared into each other's eyes until laughing was heard. 

Jess : PLEASE REVIEW! I **_BEG_** OF YOU!

Reb : -hits her on the head with a mallet-


	17. Family Worries

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**Jess: Thank you Kyoharu-chan...-teary- One...one review...Where did everyone go?**

**Reb: Calm down Jess, It's alright.

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**Chapter 17 - Family Worries**

Sasuke tried enjoying his party. A lot of the time he found it hard to focus on the party, it's color, it's music, and his friends. He kept seeing dead faces and a letter, Itachi and blood, he kept hearing Itachi laugh. But every time he saw Satsuki, wearing the Uchiha symbol, everything seemed alright.

Sasuke smiled at Satsuki, then took a drink from his cup. This was his best ever birthday. Sakura had hugged him a few times, and he didn't really care. Naruto had been louder than ever, but it seemed to make things even better. The only real 'problem' was that Kakashi was reading porn and kept trying to trick Satsuki into looking at it. Luckily, Iruka was there and warned her, so she had her plans.

Each time he came over, he didn't have to ask. Satsuki took the book and squinted her eyes, so it looked like she was really taking it in, but she couldn't see a thing. But after the 5th time, she chucked it. Kakashi's eyes widened, but he smirked at her, then retrieved his precious book and bothered her no more.

The cake had soon mostly disappeared, Naruto ate most of it. Kakashi ate nearly as much as Naruto, but not as much. Iruka, Sakura, and Satsuki all had normal sized amounts of 1 or 2 slices. Sasuke had 1 and ½ slices of cake. The snacks were half finished and 1 slice of cake remained. As they were laughing, who knows why, the doors opened and in walked...

"Hokage..." Sakura mumbled. Kakashi smiled, as did Iruka, but he looked slightly nervous.

"What? Did the party end as soon as I opened the doors?" he asked with a smile. They all smiled back, Sasuke even managed a slight grin. Then they began to have fun again. They played a few of Hokage's favorite party games, Sasuke agreed to most of them.

"Good afternoon, Lord Hokage." Satsuki greeted after the last game. She hadn't said anything to him so far. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Quite a lot, actually. But I think you've really accomplished something here." he smiled. Satsuki stared questioningly at him. He directed a finger towards Sasuke. "See how he's smiling? That in itself is a great feat. But he is enjoying himself, is surrounded by his friends...and family. Today is a wonderful day and I am glad...that you came up with the idea." he smiled and walked off to talk to Kakashi.

Satsuki blinked, and turned to smile in Sasuke's direction, which also happened to be most everybody's direction, but stopped half smile. She thought she saw Sasuke avert his eyes just now...was he staring at her? Why? Satsuki excused herself and entered the bathroom.

"Was Sasuke staring at me?" she asked her reflection. It moved, strangely...

"_No you fool. He wasn't staring at you."_ It said in a slightly mocking manner.

"Then what was he staring at?" she asked.

"_Think. Sasuke is what kind of guy?"_ her reflection asked.

"Sasuke? He's..." she thought. "Wonderful...Sasuke is a loner for the most part, he likes to keep to himself. But he cares for everyone else so much that he would risk his life for them. I know that he came to my rescue because we're related, but he would risk his life for Naruto or Sakura too. Sasuke is tormented and misunderstood. Everyone sees him as a pretty boy and a snob, but get to know him and you'll see he's actually a nice guy that just needs to be accepted."

"_But, isn't Sasuke accepted by all the girls?"_ the reflection asked in a joking way. Satsuki shook her head.

"They think he's the cutest boy they've ever seen. It's like he's jewelry to them. But Sasuke is a living, breathing human; with human emotions. He feels pain, probably more than anyone, though Naruto comes close. The point is...that Sasuke...needs, more than anything else...he needs...someone who truly understands him."

"_Understanding..."_ the reflection said in a slightly airy voice.

"He needs someone who knows his pain, a person who can see into his soul and heal the wounds he's been given. Sasuke needs a person who can truly accept him, who can love him for him. A person that, had they been able to, would have taken him in when he was a child. Because, in truth, Sasuke is just a child...alone...in the dark...crying...Deep inside, I believe, that everyone is bleeding silently about something. Sometimes it's just a cut, for a bad deed. But..."

"_But what?"_ the reflection asked, interested.

"For others." she touched the glass so soft it was as if she were touching silk and didn't want to wrinkle it. "They've been blown a terrible blow. Sasuke lost his entire family, except me and that bastard Itachi...he never knew about me, so he felt alone. Sasuke was probably reaching out for help at some point, and I should've been there...I should've been...I..." Satsuki began crying slightly.

The reflection on the other hand, was on the floor crying it's eyes out. A reflection of what she was feeling inside. Satsuki sank to the floor and closed her eyes, hugging her knees.

-

_Why didn't I notice it before?_

A young girl, age 6, was packing her things. Her mother called her and she left. Looking around, she saw bare walls and nothing but a moth eaten couch in the corner. Where had their furniture gone? Away, like they were. She closed her eyes and walked out of the house.

_Was I to young? Too stupid?_

She walked through town with her mother, her headband barely staying on. She glanced around, had someone been following them? No. She turned around and continued with her mother.

_No, youth had nothing to do with it, and no stupid person could pass that test. I was just...I didn't know!_

As they neared the edge of the village, the girl turned around. Her black hair falling over her shoulders and her dark eyes skimming the area. Nothing weird...what was this feeling? Was she leaving something more important than a house behind? She turned around reluctantly and kept walking.

_Sasuke, I'm sorry. I felt it. I knew something was wrong. I should've stayed. Mother always said she was connected to the others in a strange way. Though she never told me who 'the others' were. I should've been there to help you...when she got sick..._

At the edge of the village, she and her mother's hands separated and Satsuki turned around once more. Her eye's met Sasuke's and they stopped. Nothing seemed to be moving, though people were still working and moving in the village. Sasuke saw sadness and a distance in her eyes. Satsuki saw a carefree, fun-loving child who would've made a great friend. But, Satsuki thought she saw something in his eyes, a 'prophecy' maybe?

_I saw the warning! I felt it! Why didn't I see it earlier? Realized it?_

She thought she saw death in his eyes. As if he'd witnessed, but had not been involved in, many wars. But the darkness hidden behind the surface of his eyes...with a single spotlight. It was as if showing her the boy in years to come. She saw him, kneeling on the ground, sitting in a pool of water, like it had just rained. She looked deeper and saw he was crying...crying so hard that the pool was made out of his tears...not rain.

_Sasuke...Why didn't I see it before?_

Satsuki thought she saw a strip of golden light. Sasuke saw it in Satsuki's eyes too. But it wasn't in their eyes. The light stretched from each of them and connected in the center, a string made of their chakra. It would ensure they met again. Her hand was grasped by her mother's and she blinked, the connected disappeared but was not gone.

_It was all my fault...When mother died...I should've come back immediately. Not traveled, not avoided the past. I see it now Sasuke..._

She and her mother walked through the forest and it got darker before it got lighter. Sasuke blinked and followed, but she was gone. When the light had disappeared, the memory of it had gone as well. He stood there for a few minutes, then walked defeatedly back into the village. Satsuki looked back and saw nothing but trees. So she frowned and kept following her mom.

_I should've come home. To comfort you. To be with you all those years. Neither of us would've had to have been alone, without family._

Her mother died, Satsuki knew something had happened. When her mother said that she had family, that she should find them... "Mother, were you speaking of both boys, or just Sasuke?" She avoided the village, traveled anywhere but there. Satsuki felt she had no reason yet to return, but the nagging got stronger and she couldn't ignore it. At night she saw a boy in a dark room, crying. In the morning she forgot it and kept walking.

_Everything's ok now, right? It's okay now? I wear the symbol, I have the headband, you say you accepted me as your sister. But I'm just your half sister...does that matter?_

Finally, Satsuki decided to come home. But, where was 'home'? She always defined home as where she was at the time. But, that's not a home. Home is where you will always return to. Satsuki paused in her walking and began her journey to Konoha (Konohagakure).

_Have I waited to long to come home? No, I think I was later, but not too late. You and I had given up getting close to anyone, but now...now we've learned to trust again. To hold things dear...we've taught each other to believe in a better future than just that of 'fight-to-survive.'_

-

"-ki" a voice came flowing in. "Satsuki...Come on Satsuki, it's not good to sleep on the bathroom floor."

"Wha?" Satsuki yawned. She blinked and looked up to see Sakura looking down at her. "Oh! Did I really fall asleep?" she jumped up.

"Yep." Sakura nodded.

"We should get back." she began to walk out, but Sakura pulled her back. "What?"

"Your hair is a mess. They'll know you fell asleep. Don't worry, it was only a few minutes. But Sasuke _is_ getting worried." Sakura began to brush Satsuki's hair and was amazed at just how soft it was.

"Sorry...I won't make any more mistakes, Sasuke's birthday is really important...Important to me." she said, looking at the floor. "Sakura?"

"Huh?"

"Did I...make a mistake...by leaving?" she asked. Sakura stopped brushing her hair.

"Satsuki...don't worry about stuff like that!" she said, smiling. "Though I must impress upon you how much Sasuke was hurting while you were gone, he's okay now! Sasuke is different when you're around. He's not moody or secretive. He's...happy."

"Happy?" Satsuki asked. She was still facing with her back to Sakura.

"Yea. It's strange. I noticed a definite change from when you were gone to now." she smiled again.

"I'm really that important? Do I really make such a difference?" Satsuki asked, turning to look at Sakura.

"Oh yea." Sakura put a hand on Satsuki's shoulder. Satsuki smiled, started to cry, and lunged at Sakura. She hugged said girl.

"Thank You Sakura!" Sakura wondered if Satsuki was okay. "I've been so afraid...that I was just a burden to everybody. I thought that maybe...Sasuke only pretended to accept me..." Sakura laughed. "What?"

"You have nothing to worry about, at all! He knitted for you, he accepts you." she pat Satsuki on the back before heading out. "Let's go."

-

Sasuke sat at his table as everyone continued having fun. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sakura and Satsuki walk out of the girls' bathroom but pretended not to have seen them. Satsuki walked over to Naruto, who had his head stuck in the punch bowl, and Sakura walked over to Sasuke.

"She was worried." Sakura said with a simple smile, sitting down across from Sasuke. He blinked.

"Worried? About what?" he put his right elbow on the table and rested his right cheek in his hand, looking at the colorful balloons and seeming uninterested.

"That you were pretending to accept her." Sakura said as if it were everyday news. Sasuke's head popped up. "That she was just a burden." he looked over at his sister. "But...mostly...I think she was afraid that she'd made a mistake, a lot of mistakes."

Sasuke looked over at Sakura. Her voice had saddened slightly. It regained it's 'whatever' quality as she continued. "She asked me if she'd made a mistake by leaving." Sasuke looked at his cup of juice. "You know what?"

"What?" he asked in his 'before-Satsuki-came' usual voice. Sakura gave him a slight glare before smiling and continuing.

"She fell asleep." he gave her a confused look. "In the bathroom. I walked in to find her asleep against the bathroom wall." Sasuke was taken aback and his hand stopped supporting the weight of his head.

"Ow." he muttered as his head hit the table. Sakura nearly laughed.

"She talks in her sleep."

"What'd she say?" he asked. She smiled slightly.

"It was kinda fuzzy. Stuff like 'it's all my fault' and 'I should've come home when mom died'...that was a shock for me. Also she was asking if everything was ok. Like...'I spilt the paint bucket, but I cleaned the carpet. Is it alright now?'" she thought her example was poor, but liked the effect it left. Sasuke was fighting so hard not to let his jaw drop.

"Riiiight..." he said slowly. "So..." he couldn't think of anything to say, so he decided to refer to the 'Solitude Of Sasuke Handbook!' and sat in a brooding position.

"So. How long's her mother been dead?" she asked in a slightly sad voice. Sasuke saw, out of the corner of his eye, that Sakura was staring avidly at the table. On his other side, Satsuki was laughing with everyone else. Hokage seemed to be the one who was funny. So Sakura and Sasuke were alone to talk. He didn't look at Sakura, but spoke to her. He shrugged.

"Don't know. Probably since the Uchiha Clan Massacre." he said, still looking at the floor. Sakura's head popped up.

"That long? B-but that's...4 years alone!" she said loudly. Everyone paused and looked at the two. "Heh heh...never mind that. Sorry...heh heh..." she sweat dropped, then noticed that she had stood up. Sakura sat back down.

"You over-react. I've been alone that long too." Sasuke said monotonously, sitting to face her.

"Yeah, but...you were in this village. Everyone was nice to you. She was traveling." Sasuke gave her a look. "She talks in her sleep, I told you that. And if she traveled that means she was in the forest, always in a new town, she was ab-so-lut-ly a-lo-ne." Sasuke didn't seem to care. His eyes seemed void of all emotion. Sakura would've slapped him right about now, but she liked him, so she held back.

"You over-react." came his reply a minute later. "Satsuki can take care of herself, remember?" he still didn't look up, his eyes and half his face was hidden from view.

"Yea...but to be alone in the forest at age 9...it's despicable." Sakura had a hurt look in her eyes. Sasuke glanced up and then back down.

"She's been alone since 6." he said softly.

"Huh?" she looked up. "What? How? Wasn't she with her family before then?" she then remembered something. "Oh! She's your sister! So...you and your mother were...I mean...um...who _was_ she with?"

"Huh? Oh...she was with...her mom."

"That's it?"

"Yep. Her mom took her from the village when she was 6. I've come to the conclusion that even though she was with her mom, and though her mom was really nice to her, that Satsuki was alone after she left the village. I have no idea where they went after they left. But I was the last person from Konoha to see them."

"Oh. So you knew she existed? Then why didn't you tell everyone you weren't the only Uchiha?" Sakura asked. For a moment she thought that maybe Sasuke _wanted_ to be known as 'the avenger' and 'the last Uchiha' but Sasuke's next statement erased that.

"Because I forgot. I forgot she left. I forgot she existed until she arrived here 6 years later." he knew what it meant now. _'Don't forget the past'_ "So I went on living, when she remembered it all."

"Oh Sasuke." Sakura put a hand on his shoulder. "Why are you both blaming yourselves for things you can't control?" she asked. Neither of them had noticed that someone had walked up next to them. They were being very quiet. "You can't help that other things pushed memories out of the way. And she can't help that she was afraid to come back. So just forget it already and live your lives to the fullest."

'_I'm touching Sasuke and he isn't glaring or trying to pull away!' _Inner Sakura was jumping for joy. Outer Sakura smiled. A hand was placed on Sakura's, it was Sasuke's. He looked up, a small smile...very small, on his face. They stared into each other's eyes until laughing was heard.

"Ha ha...Ha ha ha...hahahahahahahahahahah!" they turned and saw Satsuki try, fail, and give up trying to hold back her laughter. They quickly pulled away and blushed. Everyone looked over.

Satsuki had walked over to ask if they wanted a new drink, but had stopped to listen to the conversation. She was standing to the left of the table, to Sasuke's left and Sakura's right. Sasuke was sitting with his back to Satsuki, blushing slightly and trying to hide it. Sakura wasn't facing anyone and was blushing madly, so she covered her ears so no one who wasn't in front of or next to her would see. Satsuki was laughing madly and was bent half over.

"What's so funny Satsuki?" Iruka asked. Satsuki tried answering, but couldn't stop laughing.

"I think she took some laughing gas." Kakashi joked. Iruka glared at him.

"That would be no laughing matter Kakashi." he said sternly. Kakashi shut up immediately.

"It's just...ha...they...blushing...oh...nevermind!" she covered her mouth and finished her laughing silently. Everyone except Sasuke and Sakura was lost.

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**Preview : **"That was...odd." she said with a slight smile as she stood up and 'dusted' herself off. "It was also kinda funny." she was blushing, but had disregarded that for the, she thought, hilarious moment.

"Um...s-sorry." he looked to the side and blushed a bit...a lot. He found himself staring almost directly at Satsuki's jacket. "Mom." he muttered almost in audible.

**Next chapter is the LAST CHAPTER! Please come back my lovely reviewers! _Please!_!**


	18. Jackets, Sparks, and Wings

**I waited..._12_ days...for _2_ reviews? -looks around, then shakes head slightly, putting a hand to said head- I can't believe this happened...I was _truly_ forgotten by my reviewers...even the ones that have this story on _alert_!**

**Thank you Nhi and Kyoharu-chan. -bows-**

**P.S. Kyoharu - Does your name have anything to do with Kyo and Haru from Fruits Basket?**

**The Uchiha Clan Survivors**

**

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Chapter 18 - Jackets, Sparks, and Wings**

The party had been kinda low down the rest of the day. Satsuki's laughing fit had everyone glancing at her every 5 minutes. She had long since stopped laughing but everyone thought she may start again any time. When it was over, Sasuke thanked everyone as they handed him gifts he didn't ask for and didn't want. They were all left unopened and then they all left. Satsuki looked outside.

"The sun's setting. The party went longer than I thought it would." she smiled a small smile. Sasuke glanced at her but then went back to packing the gifts into one big bag. "What's wrong brother?" Sasuke paused at the word 'brother' but then kept moving.

"Nothing." he said in a cold voice. Satsuki froze. He'd never been this cold towards her before except when they first met and he didn't know her yet. Satsuki stared at him as he walked towards the doors, bag over his shoulder.

'_Sasuke...what'd I do?'_ she asked in her head. He paused when he realized she hadn't moved yet. He looked over his shoulder at her.

"What're you doing?" his voice was...slightly less cold. She took this as comfort somewhat. He probably didn't know he'd been so cold. She managed a small smile.

"N-nothing. Um...let's go." she grabbed the bag of gifts and ran out the doors.

They ran around the town instead of through it because...well...same reason they went around to get there. When Satsuki arrived at the house, she set down the bag and caught her breath. Sasuke showed up a minute later, he hadn't rushed.

"Let's get inside." he said plainly. He took the bag from Satsuki and went inside, closing the door behind him.

"Do you realize how cold you're being Sasuke?" she asked softly. "What'd I do that was so wrong?" she then opened the door to the house.

Satsuki walked in to see Sasuke walking down to the bathroom, most likely to take a shower. She looked around and saw the bag. Satsuki went over and took out Iruka's gift. She opened it to find a pack of ramen. The man probably didn't know what Sasuke liked and went with the only thing he could think of. Satsuki heard the shower come on and put the ramen in a cabinet and then went back to the bag.

She opened Kakashi's to find one of his perverted books. She flipped all the pages in 5 seconds and then bent the book like a boomerang and tossed it into the trash can. She noted to smash Kakashi into the bottom of the lake near the village as soon as she saw him tomorrow.

Naruto had given him...an I.O.U. paper...Poor boy couldn't even think of a gift...or maybe he couldn't afford it. Whatever, she taped it to the wall near Sasuke's bed and wrote 'Naruto's Gift' on it. Sakura had gotten him a necklace, gold with silver wings. Satsuki smiled at the symbol.

'_Freedom' _she thought, setting it carefully on Sasuke's bedside table.

Hokage had given Sasuke a note telling him not to forget the important things in life and to enjoy life as it came, like _he_ did. He'd also given Sasuke a hat.

"A hat?" Satsuki put it on and it fell down over her eyes. "How big of a head does he think Sasuke has?" She asked, taking off the hat and hanging it on the wall.

She looked back around. All the gifts were opened and Sasuke probably didn't care for any of them. She'd make him wear the necklace at least once if it was the last thing she did. Satsuki realized that she hadn't given him anything really, but was fine with it. Cause in truth, she'd given a lot.

Satsuki had given Sasuke family companionship. She'd given back to him the ability to trust, the belief that life was worth living for more than just revenge, and she had worn the jacket he'd made for her. These were small and there was no real proof that she'd given them to him, but Sasuke and Satsuki knew it.

Sasuke had given Satsuki a lot too. He'd given her a reason to live, to come home. He'd made her happy by just living and had taught her to trust again, like she had for him. He had given her a jacket to symbolize her clan. Sasuke and Satsuki had cared about each other. Which to her, was the best gift ever.

She hung the jacket up and then changed her clothes. She was now wearing a dark blue, moderately long 'around-the-house' skirt and a no-sleeves 'around-the-house' shirt. She took out a book and began reading. It was a book called 'The Recent History of Hidden In The Leaf.'

A few minutes later, footsteps were heard and then Sasuke came into view. He was dripping, cloaked in a towel, and holding his headband in his right hand. Satsuki smiled up at him and closed the book. She nodded to him and then went to take a shower. She paused before entering the bathroom.

"I opened your gifts for you. Kakashi's is in the trash, Iruka's is in the cabinet, Naruto's is pinned to your bedroom wall, Sakura's is on your bedside table, and Hokage's is that big hat on the wall and a note I left on your pillow." she entered the bathroom and the shower started up.

"Uh..." he walked into his room, got dried off and changed, then saw the necklace, note, and I.O.U. "Thanks?"

He had to admit that the necklace was nice. He had a feeling that Satsuki was going to kill him if he didn't wear it so said boy put the necklace on, though it was hidden because of the shirts and jacket he always wore. Sasuke looked at the I.O.U. and decided he was never mentioning it unless Naruto brought it up. He was never wearing that hat and the note just reminded him of things he already knew and of things he'd heard before.

Sasuke checked the trash can even though he knew what Kakashi had most likely given him. He glared at the boomerang shaped book and closed the trash can. He wondered how Satsuki had turned it into a boomerang but then dropped it and went to make some dinner. He ended up just taking out the leftover food from the party and eating that.

The shower stopped and he turned as Satsuki came out. He paused. Her hair was kinda...long and silky looking when it was wet...Did _his_ hair do that? He hoped not. She blinked and looked at him.

"What?" she asked. He spoke before his mind could catch up.

"You're pretty." he then nearly choked the foot he put in his mouth a second later, realizing what he'd just said.

Satsuki was blushing madly and turned away. Sasuke fell out of his chair while trying not to choke and landed on the floor with a 'thump.' Satsuki turned and ran over. (I have done this)

"Sasuke? Are you ok?" she asked, shaking the lifeless body. He suddenly lunged up and forward, taking in a deep breath of air as he finally swallowed his food. Satsuki was clutching the towel around her and cleared her throat.

Sasuke blinked and realized what had happened. Satsuki had been to his right. When he had sat up, he had caught Satsuki by the arm. When he lunged forward, he'd brought her with him. So now, he was sitting half bent over with Satsuki in his lap. Their faces were about 4 cm apart. He let out a small noise of surprise as he backed up, stood up, and hit the wall.

"That was...odd." she said with a slight smile as she stood up and 'dusted' herself off. "It was also kinda funny." she was blushing, but had disregarded that for the, she thought, hilarious moment.

"Um...s-sorry." he looked to the side and blushed a bit...a lot. He found himself staring almost directly at Satsuki's jacket. "Mom." he muttered almost in audible.

"What?" Satsuki asked. She blinked, looked down as she remembered she was still in her towel, and then rushed into the bedroom to change.

Sasuke walked over to the jacket and put his right hand wear a person's heart would be. He ran his hand over the Uchiha seal.

"Thanks for everything mom. Satsuki is...kinda like I remember _you_. But she's my age instead of years older." he smiled sadly. Satsuki peeked out of the room, now fully dressed, but her hair was still wet. "I'm sorry. For not protecting you. And for using your jacket at Satsuki's."

Satsuki nearly fell over, but regained herself. Her jacket had belonged to his mom?

"I don't think you're angry about that though. You were a wonderful person, and Satsuki is too. But I think she's prettier than you were at her age." he smirked, taking his hand off the jacket and turning around. He started when he saw Satsuki standing there. "S-satsuki...um...did you-?"

"Yep. Why didn't you tell me it was your mom's jacket. And why not just get me a new one?" she asked in a sweet voice she rarely used. It wasn't a 'give me' voice or a 'I know you did it and now I have blackmail' voice. It was just...sweet.

"Cause you wouldn't have taken it if you had known and because I...can't sew _that_ good." he looked at the floor.

"You're a guy. Of course you can't sew well. But thanks anyway. You did a marvelous job fixing your mom's." she smiled. Sasuke shook his head.

"It _was_ my mother's. Now it's yours." he pat her on the shoulder before going in for bed. "Night."

"Night." she waved as he went in the bedroom. "And no hard feelings about you being cold to me after the party either!" she called after him. He paused and turned around.

"I was what?" he asked.

"Nevermind." she shook her head, smiling. "Come on. We should get some sleep." she walked in past Sasuke and jumped onto her bed, landing with a small 'whup.' Sasuke climbed into his bed like he always did. Soon, they both fell asleep.

-

"Mommy...Mommy? Are you ok mom? Wake up _please_." a little boy pleaded.

He was in the middle of a land full of corpses. At the moment he was sitting next to a woman's body. She too was covered in blood, her own blood. Her jacket was ripped and her headband was broken. He was crying and wallowing in other peoples blood.

"Sasuke...my son..." his mother said softly, touching the young boy's cheek. He grasped her hand, still crying.

"Don't talk mom. I'll get a doctor...They might be coming already." he said frantically, looking around.

"No honey...I am going to die. I know it. I wonder if...Melissa...knows yet." she seemed to be talking to herself. "She always could tell when we were in trouble. I know why she left..." Sasuke's mom coughed up blood.

"Mommy!" Sasuke's crying became harder. His mom's hand fell from his face and she laid it on her other one, on her chest.

"Sasuke...You're not alone...you are never alone." she closed her eyes. "Take good care of yourself. Remember...if you see a golden light...you're connected...and I love y-" and she was gone.

"Mommy...Mommy! MOMMY!" Sasuke laid down over his mom and cried. "Mommy...Open your eyes...please..."

He laid there for awhile. Itachi had already come to him before he'd gone to his mom. Sasuke fell in and out of sleep. When he was fully awake, he sat up. His cheeks were tear stained, but that would disappear after awhile. Sasuke took off his mom's jacket to keep, to remember her by. He saw people coming. The villagers.

Now they would know what happened too.

-

Sasuke sat bolt upright in bed. He hated those memories.

'_I wonder if Melissa knows yet.'_

He blinked. Who was Melissa? He closed his eyes.

'_If you see a golden light, you're connected.'_

Sasuke remembered being 6 and seeing Satsuki. There had been a...golden light? He opened his eyes. Sasuke looked over at Satsuki. Golden light connects...had Melissa been her mom?

"Satsuki?" he asked softly. She didn't move. "Satsuki." he went over to her bed. "What was your mother's name?"

"Her name was...Melissa..." Satsuki said softly, and sadly. "Melissa the Flying Dove. The town we lived in was small. Everyone thought my mother was so beautiful, so brave. They called her the Flying Dove because she seemed to bring peace to the village."

Sasuke listened without talking. He knew she was awake, but just...felt like talking. So he wasn't going to interrupt.

"If she hadn't died...I would've stayed in that village, growing up as the _Junior_ Dove...or something..." Sasuke thought the name was stupid.

"If the massacre hadn't happened, if mom hadn't died...I wouldn't be here in the first place." Sasuke nearly thanked the massacre, but caught himself. "I would never have known _why_ I left home, _what_ I truly was, _who_ I was to other people."

Sasuke stared at his feet, which was easy seeing as he was sitting down.

"I know it's sad that my mother died...but she's helped me in many ways _since_ she died." Satsuki said sadly. "You talk in your sleep." she turned over. "Mommy? You were reliving the massacre...weren't you?" Sasuke's head popped up. He nodded. "I'm sorry."

"Nothing to apologize for." he stood up and sat on his bed.

"Why'd you want to know my mom's name?" she asked.

"As my mom died...she mentioned a Melissa and golden lights. Said 'Melissa should know'...about the massacre." he laid on his back on his bed on top of his covers.

"Golden lights?" Satsuki remembered seeing Sasuke at 6 years old. A golden light flashed in her mind and she smiled. "So...My mom and your mom were connected?" she asked.

"I guess so." Sasuke shrugged. He heard Satsuki sit up.

"Just like..._we're_ connected." she said happily. "The Avenger, who doesn't want to be the avenger, and the J-" Sasuke raised his hand.

"Junior Dove sounds wrong. It's for a little girl you left back at age 9. The so-named Avenger and the Spark of Life." he smirked.

"If my nick name changes, so does yours." she said jokingly. Sasuke blinked and sat up.

"What is it then Sparks?" he asked, smiling. Satsuki couldn't think of a name. The moonlight caught on something Sasuke was wearing. A necklace? She saw what it was and smiled. Satsuki got up and went over to him. She put her pointer finger on the necklace before he could move.

"The Wings of Freedom." she laughed. "You make everyone around you feel more free, but they don't know it for awhile. See, everyone seems to be trying to out match you in something. If they get good enough, they're free. Free to use it, right?" she smiled.

"And you have given everyone around me new reason to go on fighting." Sasuke said simply, closing his eyes. "Get back to sleep...wait, why were you awake anyway?" he asked. She shook her head as she went back to her bed.

"I was dreaming...of a golden eagle, the most majestic type of eagle if you ask me.." she explained. "It was engulfed in flames, like a mystical phoenix. Never dying, always reborn. Inspiring others, and learning to open up." she noticed something. "Hey, that's neat."

"What?"

"You, Wings of Freedom, the Eagle. Me, Spark of Life, the Flames. Our nicknames equal a phoenix!" she rolled over in her bed and closed her eyes. "Night, Wings." she laughed.

Sasuke made a noise. "Night, Sparks." he closed his eyes and they were both sent adrift in sleep with the image of a Golden Eagle, covered in flames. An everlasting Phoenix.

* * *

That's it. The end. I actually have an idea for another, bonus chapter. But you guys, the reviewers, will have to tell me what you want the pairing to be in the "UCS Bonus Chapter!" Also, one time thing, I will write ANY pairing the reviewers tell me to, if it was the highest vote.

Uh...lemme think...pairings...

Sasuke x Sakura

Sasuke x Satsuki

Sasuke x ...-shudder- Kakashi

Sasuke x ...Naruto

Sasuke x ...uh...anybody else you say?

Naruto x Sakura

Naruto x Satsuki

Naruto x ...this is so wrong...Kakashi

Naruto x anybody else you can think of and I know of...

Sakura x ...oh boy...Satsuki -wrong, so wrong-

Sakura x Kakashi -possibly more wrong than the last one-

Sakura x anybody else you say that I know...

Anybody else in my story besides Itachi x anybody else you say from Naruto besides Itachi...

Note : UCS stands for Uchiha Clan Survivors : End Note

Thanks to all of you guys for all of your help...and if you review again..._please_ come back!


	19. Notice

Hello fans, readers, haters, etc.! This is Jess, the author of The Uchiha Clan Survivors, here to tell you that I've begun writing an Alternate Universe to this story.

SasukeSakura, NarutoSatsuki, etc etc.

Satsuki joins the school newspaper and gets her own column, **Satsuki's Character Corner.** Every Friday she writes about a different person in the school that she's seen and discuses how they are in her own eyes.

This is a group project, between me and you. Satsuki tells the readers how many of the people who guessed the character right. No monologue about a character will include their name, you have to guess it.** If you don't guess, then there is no story**.

So please read and review, thanks much!


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